Original Article Published by David Menjor of the Daily Observer Liberia
Following Dr. Malachi Z. York’s over 16 years of imprisonment already served in the United States of America, this newspaper has established, through a reliable research, that the name Dwight York, which has been accorded Dr. York by both the Middle District Court of Georgia and the Bureau of Prisons (BOP), is not his name but that of one of his sons, Dwight Totten York.
The question that lingers further in this finding, is whether Dr. York was aware that both the court and the BOP actually recorded the name that belongs to his son as his name when they proceeded with their activities involving him.
According to the United States Pre-Sentencing Investigation report, which consists of paperwork that the judge used to help determine the right way to punish a defendant, as was filed against Dr. York on April 1, 2003, it has Dwight York, who is said to have been born in Boston, Massachusetts, on June 26, 1945.
Contrary to this information, however, the Daily Observer has in its possession a Certificate of Vital Records from The Commonwealth of Massachusetts State Department of Public Health, where Dr. Malachi Z. York is said to have been born.
The record states: “A search has been made of the records in this office for the birth of Dwight York, throughout the records of the Commonwealth for the years 1941-1950, and that said record has not been found.”
According to Dr. York’s son, Dwight Totten York, he stated in an affidavit that the mix-up on the issues of identity and status began in the early 1990s when Dr. York purchased land in Eatonton, Georgia, on which development began and where Dr. York came to serve his Consulate Post for Liberia.
In an affidavit written by Dwight Totten York under oath on April 9, 2009, he said: “I, Dwight Totten, A.K.A. Dwight T. York, attest to the fact that I did sign documents for my father Malachi York in the name of Dwight York within Putnam County, Georgia, for permits and deed recordings which is the reason some documents say my name Dwight York and some names say Malachi York and some say both.” He added, “in conclusion, I am Dwight T. York, and my father is Malachi York. I went into town to apply for and sign paperwork in order to obtain various permits for the structures that once existed on the 404 Shadydale Rd. property.”
There seems to be much conflicting information on the World Wide Web when it comes to who is Dr. York, or who is Dwight York, as previously reported by the Daily Observer. Wikipedia, for example, shows that Dr. York is a convicted “child molester” and “rapist”, which is not stated on his judgement signed by the presiding judge for the Middle District Court of Georgia, Judge C. Ashley Royal.
On the Internet, it is reported that Dr. York was convicted in the biggest child molestation case in the United States, but after thorough perusal of his judgement, as previously reported, it came to be known that Dr. York’s actual charges were: Conspiracy to Transport Minors in Interstate Commerce for Unlawful Sexual Activity; Conspiracy to Travel in Interstate Commerce for Unlawful Sexual Activity With Minors; and Conspiracy to Structure Cash Transactions to Evade Currency Transactions Reporting Requirements.
Since Dr. York’s incarceration, there has been a plethora of recantations that seemed to have gone unreported by many of the news sources that earlier covered the case.
The Daily Observer has in its possession affidavits of recantation of four alleged victims, witnesses who initially testified against Dr. York but later, in affidavit and under oath, made changes to their statements. Ebony Hill, who according to the United States Middle District Court transcripts, initially testified against Dr. York on the 13th of January, 2004, in her affidavit in which she testified in front of Notary Public Colisha A. Butler on April 27th, 2009, stated the following in her recantation:
“The reasons I testified untruthfully against Mr. York at trial is because the law enforcement agents threatened me by saying that I abandoned my son. I was also afraid of going to jail because the FBI said that my name was involved in some very serious things. I was so scared of losing my child and intimidated by the FBI. I just went along with their story of Malachi York being a child molester.”
With efforts exerted by the Garlawolu Law Firm, Dr. York’s naturalization records, which accorded him Liberian citizenship, were found at Criminal Court “B” in Monrovia. With this development, the Liberian Government is now expected to prove to the U.S. Government that Dr. York is not a U.S. citizen any longer and should be granted freedom from imprisonment and subsequent repatriation to Liberia.