A man wrongfully imprisoned for over four decades walks free from murder charges—only to face removal to a country he barely knows.
Subramanyam “Subu” Vedam spent 43 years behind bars for a crime he didn’t commit. When new evidence cleared his name in a 1980 murder case, he expected to reunite with his family and begin rebuilding his life.
Instead, US Immigration and Customs Enforcement immediately took him into custody. Now ICE wants to send him to India—a nation he left as an infant and hasn’t seen since.
A Difficult Transition
Vedam’s sister, Saraswathi, describes the jarring change her brother now faces. He’s gone from a familiar prison environment where he’d earned respect through mentorship and good behavior to an immigration detention center where he shares cramped quarters with 60 strangers.
Despite these challenges, Vedam remains focused on what he sees as a victory. “My name has been cleared,” he tells his family. “I’m no longer a prisoner, I’m a detainee.”
The Original Case
In 1980, Tom Kinser, a 19-year-old college student and Vedam’s former roommate, disappeared. Nine months later, authorities discovered his body in a wooded area with a fatal gunshot wound to the head.
Investigators learned that Vedam had asked Kinser for a ride on the day he vanished. Though Kinser’s vehicle was returned to its usual location, no witnesses saw who brought it back.
Authorities charged Vedam with murder, denied him bail, and confiscated his passport and green card, labeling him a flight risk due to his foreign status. Two years later, a jury convicted him. He received a life sentence for murder and, through a plea agreement, an additional sentence for a drug offense to run concurrently.
Vedam never stopped asserting his innocence. His supporters emphasized a critical fact: no physical evidence connected him to Kinser’s death.
Justice Delayed
After decades of appeals, new evidence emerged that proved Vedam’s innocence in the murder. This month, Centre County District Attorney Bernie Cantorna announced he would not seek a retrial.
However, Vedam’s freedom came with an unexpected complication. A 1988 deportation order remained active, stemming from his murder and drug convictions. His family anticipated they would need to petition for his immigration case to be reopened.
ICE moved faster. The agency arrested Vedam immediately after his release, citing the decades-old deportation order. While the murder conviction has been overturned, ICE notes that his drug conviction remains on record. The agency stated it was executing a lawful order and indicated Vedam would stay in custody until deportation.
Fighting for Family
Vedam’s legal team argues his case deserves reconsideration. During his imprisonment, he earned three academic degrees and became a mentor to other inmates—a record they believe demonstrates rehabilitation and character.
“We didn’t even have a moment to hold him in our arms,” Saraswathi said. “He conducted himself with such honor and purpose and integrity. That should mean something.”
Torn from Home
The proposed deportation to India would send Vedam to a place he has virtually no connection to. He left the country at nine months old. Any surviving relatives there are distant. His real family—his sister, her four daughters, and other cousins—live in the US and Canada.
“He will again be robbed and miss out on the lives of the people closest to him by being halfway across the world,” Saraswathi explained. “It’s almost like having his life stolen twice.”
Vedam holds legal permanent resident status. Before his arrest decades ago, he had applied for citizenship—an application that was accepted. Both his parents were US citizens.
His attorney, Ava Benach, argues that deportation would compound the injustice. “To send him to a country where he has few connections would represent another terrible wrong done to a man who has already endured a record-setting injustice,” she said. As Vedam’s family works to navigate this new legal battle, they remain determined to bring him home—for good this time.RetryClaude can make mistakes.
