A spokeswoman for New York State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman confirmed Friday that the AG has received a plea for help from accused killer Wayne Oxley.

The official declined to further discuss the case.

Oxley, who is due to go on trial for murder for a third time, appealed to Schneiderman in a letter made public late Thursday.

In his letter to Schneiderman, Oxley writes "I am in desperate need of your assistance."

Oxley provided copies of the letter to 7 News and other news organizations.

In the letter, Oxley once again proclaims his innocence.

He writes "...I am not guilty of this crime and the St. Lawrence County D.A. (District Attorney) Nicole Duve knows it."

The letter is the latest twist in a murder case that began in August 2005 in Ogdensburg.

A man named Bernard Trickey was beaten to death with a baseball bat. Oxley, his neighbor, was charged with the crime and convicted of murder.

A state court later threw out Oxley's conviction, prompting a second trial, which lasted eight weeks but ended in a hung jury.

Complicating the case, a key prosecution witness and neighbor of both Oxley and Trickey, John Shannon, died in a suspicious fire a few weeks after Trickey's murder.

In his letter to Schneiderman, Oxley repeats his belief that he is the victim of a conspiracy involving the police, the D.A. and judge Jerome Richards, who presided over the trials.

"I implore you for your help in uncovering facts that will clear me of this crime," Oxley writes.

"D.A. Duve must answer the questions, who murdered John Shannon while he was under police protection and why? In addition why are hundreds of thousands of dollars of tax payer funds being wasted to try to convict an innocent man."

Oxley's letter was received by 7 News Thursday night, after government offices had closed for the day. We asked Duve's office for comment Friday, and are awaiting a response.

In his letter, Oxley says he is scheduled to stand trial starting January 10. The trial was delayed throughout 2011, for reasons that were not clear Thursday night.