‘We’ve Waited 20 Years for Justice.’ Adnan Syed’s Brother Reacts to New Trial

The brother of Adnan Syed has spoken out after the subject of the popular podcast Serial was granted a new trial.

“We are happy and in shock still,” Yusef Syed told People. “We have waited 20 years for justice.”

Syed was convicted of murdering his former high school girlfriend Hae Min Lee in 1999 and sentenced to life in prison.

On Thursday, a Baltimore circuit court judge ruled that Syed deserved a new trial because his attorney didn’t cross-examine a cell tower expert about the reliability of the data placing Syed near the burial site.

Rabia Chaudry, a friend of Adnan’s who has championed his innocence, also issued a reaction:

Neither Koenig nor the Serial staff have yet reacted to the news of the new trial.