DJ Jam Master Jay, a member of the groundbreaking hip-hop group Run-DMC, was shot and killed in a recording studio in the New York borough of Queens on October 30, 2002, a spokesman for the group said. (Photo via Reuters)
A Queens man pleaded guilty in a Brooklyn federal courthouse Monday to his role in the murder of Jason Mizell, the famed member of hip-hop group Run DMC who went by “Jam Master Jay,” nearly a quarter-century ago.
Jay Bryant, 52, of Far Rockaway pleaded guilty to a federal murder charge and will likely be sentenced to between 15 and 20 years in prison, federal prosecutors said. He had pleaded guilty in December 20223 to separate narcotics trafficking and firearms charges.
In pleading guilty, Bryant admitted to participating in the fatal shooting Mizell on the night of Oct. 30, 2002, inside the rap legend’s recording studio on Merrick Boulevard in Jamaica.
Prosecutors said Bryant and two accomplices to the murder — Karl Jordan Jr. and Ronald Washington — managed to breach a locked fire escape exit door to enter the building.
Moments later, according to the charges, Jordan and Washington entered the studio and ordered a woman to lie on the floor at gunpoint. Jordan then walked over to Mizell and opened fire, shooting him in the head and causing his death.
An investigation later revealed that Mizell had been involved in a narcotics operation separate from his music career and had acquired 10 kilograms of cocaine from a supplier in August 2002. The cocaine was to have been distributed in Maryland, but due to a resulting dispute, Mizell had cut Washington and Jordan out of the deal, which had been worth nearly $200,000.
Both Washington and Jordan were previously convicted of their roles in the drug-trafficking case and Mizell’s murder. Jordan’s conviction in the killing, however, was later vacated by a federal judge; he is awaiting trial on other charges.
“More than two decades after the cold-blooded, execution-style killing of Mr. Mizell, an exhaustive investigation revealed Bryant’s role and today he finally admitted his guilt,” said U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York Joseph Nocella. “The prosecutors in our Office and our law enforcement partners never give up, no matter how long it takes, in the pursuit of justice for the victim and the victim’s family.”