"Despite maintaining their innocence, the Central Park Five’s contention that their confessions were coerced didn’t gain credibility until June 2002, when Matias Reyes claimed sole responsibility for raping and beating Meili.
Reyes, a convicted murderer and serial rapist, was serving a minimum 33-year prison sentence when he confessed to the crime. His DNA matched genetic material found at the crime scene and he provided details of the assault that led investigators to take his claim seriously.
Reyes also committed a similar assault on a woman in Central Park two days before Meili was found."
https://www.amny.com/news/central-park-five-1.19884350
In a bizarre twist, some die-hard fanatics believe Reyes' voluntary confession supported by all the forensic evidence is a fake!