Subramanyam 'Subu' Vedam: From Exoneration to Possible Deportation

Mon Oct 20 2025 19:01:31 GMT+0300 (Eastern European Summer Time)

Subramanyam 'Subu' Vedam, wrongfully imprisoned for over 40 years, faces deportation to India despite his recent exoneration for a murder he did not commit. His family fights for his release and argues against the deportation order.

After serving 43 years in prison for a crime he didn't commit, Subramanyam 'Subu' Vedam was exonerated, but now finds himself facing deportation to India. His family is appealing the order as they navigate the challenges of his abrupt transition from prison to detention. Despite his newly cleared name, longstanding deportation orders related to previous convictions pose a significant hurdle in his path to freedom.

After serving 43 years in prison for a murder he did not commit, Subramanyam Subu Vedam was finally free. New evidence had exonerated him earlier this month of the murder of his former roommate. But before he could reach his family's arms, Mr Vedam was taken into custody by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), who want to deport him to India - a country he has not lived in since he was a baby.

Now, Mr Vedam's legal team is fighting a deportation order and his family is determined to get him out of custody, for good. His family are now working to navigate a new and very different situation, his sister Saraswathi Vedam told the BBC.

Her brother has gone from a facility where he knew inmates and guards alike, where he mentored fellow inmates, to a facility where he shares a room with 60 men and where his history of good behaviour is unknown. Mr Vedam has been repeating one message to his family: I want us to focus on the win.

The 1980 murder

More than 40 years ago, Mr Vedam was convicted of murdering his once-roommate Tom Kinser, a 19-year-old college student. Kinser's body was found nine months after he went missing in a wooded area. Mr Vedam was charged and convicted based largely on circumstantial evidence. Throughout his time in prison, he maintained his innocence.

Mr Vedam's exoneration

After years of legal appeals, new evidence surfaced and Mr Vedam was exonerated. However, he still faces the 1988 deportation order stemming from his original convictions. Despite a murder charge being dropped, his family is now attempting to have his immigration status reassessed.

Potential deportation to India

ICE is holding Mr Vedam for potential deportation to India, despite him having no meaningful ties there. This has raised concerns among his family who argue that deporting him to a country where he has no connections would only compound the injustice he has already faced. They describe this ongoing ordeal as another life stolen from him.