Wrongfully convicted Colorado man to be paid $4.1 million

Timothy Lee Masters, 38, spent nearly a decade in prison before the new evidence pointed to another suspect and led a judge to toss out his conviction in 2008.

Last year, Masters filed a federal lawsuit against prosecutors and police, claiming they conspired to frame him and withheld evidence that could have cleared him.

"I would gladly pay $10 million, or whatever it took, if I could get those years of my life back. Unfortunately, that can never happen," Masters said in a statement released Tuesday by his attorney, David Lane.

Lane said the settlement would afford Masters -- who lives in northern Colorado and has struggled to make a living selling items on EBay -- the financial security to move forward.

"He was released without a penny to his name. No $100 and a suit of clothes for Tim. He couldn't pay a parking ticket up to a couple of months ago," Lane said.