After nearly 18 years as a cold case, 2 men have finally been indicted in the 2002 murder of Hip-Hop Legend and founding member of Run-DMC, Jason “Jam Master Jay” Mizell.
The men indicted have been identified as Ronald Washington and Karl Jordan, the U.S. attorney’s office in Brooklyn announced Monday. Jordan, 36, had been arrested this past Sunday and pleaded not guilty the following day. Washington, 56, is currently serving a federal sentence and is set ot arraigned this week.
The men have been charged with murder whilst engaged in narcotics trafficking and firearm-related murder, while Jordan faces several additional charges of distributing narcotics.
Prosecutors allege that the men walked into the famed DJ’s studio in Queens and killed him in a “drug-related” homicide, according to the acting U.S. attorney for eastern New York, Seth DuCharme. Both men face a minimum of 20 years in prison and a possibility of a death sentence if convicted.
Run-DMC was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2009, to commemorate the group’s legacy of breaking ground for hip-hop into the mainstream through the innovative sound and ability to blend genres, including the 1986 hit duet with rock icons Aerosmith, on “Walk This Way.”
Run DMC’s surviving members, Joseph Simmons and Darryl Matthews McDaniels, did not immediately reply to requests for comment.
Sonus Magazine 