Emmanuel Malan, a male taxi driver, was killed on June 21, 1995, during the last stretch of a violent, fast-moving rampage that had already spilled from New Jersey into New York City. By the time Malan’s shift intersected with the wrong passenger, police in multiple jurisdictions were already searching for a parolee they believed was armed, unpredictable, and escalating.
According to accounts tied to the broader case narrative, Malan was driving uptown when the passenger turned on him and shot him in the back of the head, leaving Malan dead in his cab. His body was later found on East 101st Street in Manhattan, and investigators treated the killing as part of the same chain of robberies and shootings that had left several other victims dead or wounded in just a few days.
The suspect identified by authorities in Malan’s murder was Darnell Collins, also known as Mwanza Atiba Kamau, an ex-convict and parolee who, by then, had been linked to multiple shootings across two states. Earlier in New York, Collins was said to have demanded money from strangers, shot victims at close range, and fled on foot through buildings and streets to avoid capture; in the hours before Malan was killed, police said Collins killed a cab driver and stole the driver’s car as part of his escape.
Investigators also described clues that helped stitch the episodes together as Collins moved from one scene to the next. In the telling of the spree’s final New York moments, a telephone calling card associated with an earlier encounter was found near where Malan was discovered, reinforcing the connection between the cab killing and the suspect’s prior movements and thefts.
There were no trials or convictions connected to Malan’s death because Collins did not survive long enough to be arrested and prosecuted. Police spotted Collins in the stolen vehicle and a chase followed into New Jersey, ending when the vehicle crashed and Collins ran; authorities said he was killed in a shootout with police on June 21, 1995, bringing the investigation’s manhunt phase to a sudden close even as it left behind grieving families and unanswered questions about motive.
