Wrongly accused of Chicago murder, Rockford man teaches civics after 14 years in prison

ROCKFORD, Ill. (WTVO) – A Rockford man who spent 14 years in prison for a Chicago murder he didn’t commit has been busy giving back to the community.

Omar Muhammad, formerly Omar Saunders, was only 19 when he heard a prison door slam shut behind him.

In 1988, he and three other teens—known collectively as the Roscetti 4 —were sentenced to life behind bars for the kidnapping, rape and murder of Chicago medical student, 23-year-old Lori Roscetti.

“They needed people to fit the profile,” Muhammad said of how the investigation was conducted. “They fabricated the case. They made up the whole confessional.”

Muhammad’s conviction hung largely on false confessions by two of his codefendants, Marcellius Bradford and Calvin Ollins.

“When they say false confession—these kids never made a confession,” he said. “[The police] wrote it up and had them sign it.”

Omar was exonerated after DNA evidence proved he, Bradford, and cousins Calvin and Larry Ollins, did not commit the crime. The two men who killed Lori Roscetti were arrested in 2002.

“We were young,” Muhammad said. “We were marginalized. We were kids that were getting in trouble. We were burglarizing and stuff like that. That’s what I did when I was younger—17 years old. I regret that stuff.”

Instead of coming out of prison bitter, Muhammad went to college, started investing in real estate and in 2019 wrote a book about the case .

He spends his time these days teaching free government and civics classes, something he dove deep into when he was locked up.

“I teach them the Constitution and all of that stuff, so they can understand that,” he said.

Omar says the goal of teaching classes at the Rockford building he owns is to provide citizens with tools to take part in the civic process.

When he entered the Illinois Department of Corrections, Omar was oblivious to how his local, state and federal governments operated. So, on the inside, he studied all he could. When he walked out a free and innocent man, he took a wealth of knowledge with him.

“I was fortunate when I was in prison to run into these minds,” he said. “And it changed my whole perspective. I learned that I am in one of the greatest countries on Earth.”

The classes Muhammad teaches are primarily aimed at the African American community. He says marginalized African American youth especially need to hear his message.

“There’s obligations, duties and responsibilities that we all have,” he said. “The first obligation and duty that you have in a republic is to yourself.”

Muhammad moved to Rockford in 2004.

Anyone interested in taking classes is encouraged to call Omar Muhammad at 779-772-2168.

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