A Philadelphia man who was exonerated and given a $4.1 million settlement after serving 24 years in prison for a murder conviction that was dropped is headed back to prison -- for a separate killing.

Shaurn Thomas -- who was freed from a life sentence in 2017 after his 1992 murder conviction was overturned -- pleaded guilty last Thursday {snip}

Thomas, 50, was convicted of gunning down his girlfriend's friend, Akeem Edwards, last year after the 38-year-old father allegedly failed to pay out $1,200 for the cocaine Thomas gave him to sell, according to the local paper.

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At the time, a jury convicted him of second-degree murder for the 1990 shooting death of a North Philadephia businessman in a robbery gone wrong {snip}

But a judge vacated his conviction in 2017 after issues with the police investigation -- including the failure to verify his alleged alibi -- and interrogation tactics involving alleged co-conspirators were unearthed. {snip}

Prosecutors said they weren't 100% convinced that Thomas was completely innocent of the killing, but the Philadelphia District Attorney's Office declined to retry his case {snip}