Kidd Creole, a founding member of hip hop group Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, has been sentenced to 16 years behind bars for killing a homeless man.
The 62-year-old, real name Nathaniel Glover, was found guilty of manslaughter in the death of 55-year-old John Jolly in August 2017.
Creole stabbed him twice in the chest with a steak knife on his way to work in midtown Manhattan, New York City. Jolly had asked Creole: "What's up?" before the incident unfolded.
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Jolly was taken to a nearby hospital, where he later died of his stab wounds. Prosecutors claimed the rapper thought Jolly was gay and hitting on him.
During Creole's trial, the court heard that he went straight to work after the attack, changed his clothes and washed the knife. He was arrested the next day.
In a statement, as reported by The Independent, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said: "Mr. Jolly’s death was devastating to his family and those who knew him.
"Every life we lose to violent crime ripples throughout our entire city, and we will continue to ensure everyone in our borough can live their lives with the sense of safety and security they deserve.
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Creole, who was originally looking at a maximum of 25 years in prison, will also face five years of supervision following his release.
Glover's lawyer Scottie Celestin tried to argue that the rapper was acting in self-defence, given the time of night of their encounter.
In a statement to PEOPLE, he said: "Ladies and gentlemen, this is New York City. It's 12 o'clock at night. Who's saying 'What's up?' to you with good intentions? His fear for his life was reasonable.
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"I think today's sentence is egregious and extreme. While I am disappointed, I continue to have faith in our judicial system.
"My focus is now on the appeal process. There are many appealable issues, specifically the denial of Mr. Glover being able to assert the justification of self-defence, despite the fact that he was retreating and the victim followed behind him.
"I am confident this verdict will be reversed on appeal. While some would be happy with the the presumed victory of the acquittal on the top charge of murder, we don't view it as win.
"I believe the 16 years given are heavy handed, and motivated not by the evidence and mitigating facts but by external factors."
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Cameron Frew