New York cop killer scheduled for parole after 43 years
The one remaining of three convicted Black Revolutionary Army members behind bars for murdering two NYPD officers nearly 50 years ago is set to be released on parole in October, police union officials stated on Tuesday.
Anthony Bottom, who now goes by Jalil Abdul Muntaqim, has spent 43 years in prison for his role in the brutal assassinations of Officers Joseph Piagentini and Waverly Jones in 1971 will be released by October 20th, a source told Pix 11 News.
The boardâs decision infuriated Piagentiniâs widow, Diane Piagentini.
âWe are heartbroken to see another of Joeâs killers set free by politics. But more than anything else, we are angry,â she said in a statement.
The widow pleaded with the board to keep Bottom locked up for life at his October 2018 parole hearing. âAnthony Bottom never ever should be released from prison. My husband and Waverly Jones are not coming home, and Anthony Bottom should never be released ⌠He swore at the sentencing he could never be rehabilitated. If he gets out he will continue to work for his cause.â Piagentini stated.
Bottom was granted parole after successfully appealing the boardâs October 2019 decision to keep him behind bars. Bottom, Herman Bell and Albert Washington were convicted of luring Piagentini and Jones to a Harlem housing project with a phony 911 call and executed the cops in cold blood.
The president of the Patrolmenâs Benevolent Association blamed state policies for Bottomâs release.
âGov. Cuomo and the State Legislature have spent years torturing crime victims, especially the hero families of fallen police officers,â Lynch said in a statement.
âThey knew that changing the parole guidelines would unleash more vicious killers like Anthony Bottom back onto our streets.â The release of the cop killer during the height of the Black Lives Matter movement, which calls for the abolishment of police and emboldening the dregs of society to attack police has been met with harsh criticism from members of the public.

