Malcolm X was assassinated on February 21, 1965, at the Audubon Ballroom in Manhattan, New York City. The man who shot him was Thomas Hagan, also known as Talmadge X Hayer and Mujahid Abdul Halim, a former member of the Nation of Islam. Hagan admitted to the assassination, stating he acted with several accomplices to avenge Malcolm X's criticism of the Nation of Islam leadership
. Three men—Thomas Hagan, Muhammad Abdul Aziz (formerly Norman 3X Butler), and Khalil Islam (formerly Thomas 15X Johnson)—were initially convicted of the murder. However, Hagan confessed that Aziz and Islam were not involved. In 2021, Aziz and Islam were exonerated after evidence emerged that crucial information had been suppressed during the original investigation and trial
. Hagan himself was shot in the leg by one of Malcolm X's bodyguards during the assassination attempt and was apprehended at the scene. He later reaffirmed in affidavits that the two other convicted men were innocent and named other Nation of Islam members as participants
. In summary, Thomas Hagan was the primary assassin who killed Malcolm X, while the involvement of the other two men convicted alongside him was later discredited and overturned
