A man shot two men and killed one in a Chicago gang shooting in 2003 but his twin brother was arrested instead.
Karl Smith and Kevin Dugar are both twin brothers serving different sentences in separate prisons.
The 38-year old prison inmates, saw each other for the first time in years when Smith gave a confessional statement copping to the crime he committed but for which his twin was arrested for instead.
According to Smith he said “I am here to confess to a crime I committed and he was wrongly accused”.
As at the time of the shooting in 2003, Karl Smith and Kevin Dugar both went by the same street name “twin”. They both acted as one and sometimes pretended to be the other. They were usually identified by their names, because Smith was bearing his mother’s maiden name.
Smith is 5 foot 9, and weighs 195 pounds, while Dugar is 5 foot 9, and weighs 200 pounds according to the state inmate record.
Cook Country prosecutors took a complete view of Smith’s testimony and his identical twin has been behind bars since 2007 during the arrest.
‘He has got nothing to lose” said Assistant state and Attorney Carol Royala, noting that Smith’s testimony did not correspond with those of the eye witnesses who testified in court.
A member of the rival gang to Smith’s and Dugar’s conservative vice lords, identified “Twin” as the gunman who shot him three times and killed another man at Sheridan road and Argyle street in march 2003.
Smith who described the shooting in detail said he left a party he hosted at night to go buy marijuana, and ran into a rival gang. He then fired those shots.
He also admitted to have evaded investigators request to question him then, because he wasn’t bold enough to speak the truth then but has found God while in prison and decided to speak out.
The judge is yet to decide whether Dugar will receive a new trial following the confessional statement released by his brother.
Judy Dugar, the mother of the twins said it hurts to hear prosecutors did not accept Smith’s testimony.
She said “He wouldn’t lie about that, I know Kevin will get out, I hope when he does he would change his whole life around”.