More than two decades after the death of Jason Mizell, aka Jam Master Jay, the DJ of Run-DMC, Jay Bryant has been convicted for his role in the 2002 murder.

On Monday, in a federal court in Brooklyn, United States, Mr Bryant, who also used several identities including Bradshaw Dewitt, Jason Robinson, Morgan Bryant, Deshawn Sadler, Jay Sadler and Big Jay, pleaded guilty to his involvement in the murder. 

The plea was entered before a magistrate judge, Peggy Cross-Goldenberg.

As alleged in court filings, between the 1990s and 2002, separate from his music career, Mr Mizell was involved in arranging for the sale of kilogramme quantities of cocaine in the Eastern District of New York and elsewhere.  

In August 2002, Mr Mizell acquired approximately 10 kilograms of cocaine on consignment from a supplier.  The cocaine was intended to be distributed in Maryland by co-defendants Karl Jordan Jr, Ronald Washington, and other co-conspirators. 

A dispute between Washington and one of the co-conspirators in Baltimore resulted in Mr Mizell cutting Washington and Jordan out of the Maryland drug deal worth almost $200,000.  

Following this betrayal, Messrs Washington and Jordan continued in the larger narcotics conspiracy until they ultimately cut out Mr Mizell by murdering him on October 30, 2002, according to a statement by the U.S. Department of Justice on Monday.

On October 30, 2002, Mr Mizell was present at his recording studio, ‘24/7’, located on Merrick Boulevard in Jamaica, Queens. At approximately 7:30 p.m., Mr Bryant entered the building containing the recording studio and opened a locked fire escape door to allow Messrs Jordan and Washington to enter without being seen by Mizell.  

Messrs Jordan and Washington entered the recording studio, armed with firearms. Mr Washington pointed his firearm at an individual and demanded she lie on the floor, and Mr Jordan approached Mr Mizell and fired two shots at close range, striking Mizell once in the head and killing him.  The second shot struck another individual in the leg.

Mr Mizell rose to global fame in the 1980s as a member of Run-DMC, one of the most influential groups in hip hop history. 

Upon sentencing, Mr Bryant faces a mandatory minimum of 15 years in prison, with a maximum of 20 years. The sentence will run alongside penalties tied to separate narcotics trafficking and firearms charges he had earlier admitted to, which were accepted in December 2023.