Witness to Run-DMC member Jam Master Jay’s shooting death points out accused killer in court

News

By Kyle Schnitzer

A friend who watched famed Run-DMC member Jam Master Jay get gunned down in his Queens recording studio pointed out the accused killer in court Wednesday as he described the long-unsolved crime.

Uriel “Tony” Rincon kept quiet for more than two decades — until he took the stand in Brooklyn federal court, telling a jury Jay, whose real name was Jason Mizell, was shot dead by his godson, Karl Jordan Jr. on Oct. 30, 2002.

“I heard a couple of shots,” Rincon said. “I see Jay fall because his back was to me at the time. As Jay was falling, I saw Jordan shrug him off of him.”

Jordan, 39, and Ronald Washington, 59, are each charged with murder while engaged in a narcotics trafficking conspiracy.

Rincon told US Assistant Attorney Mark Misorek that he and Mizell, who had a .380-caliber handgun resting on a sofa armrest, were playing the “Madden” football video game at the DJ’s 24/7 Studio on Merrick Boulevard when the pair arrived.

Jordan, whose nickname is “Little D,” walked through the door directly toward Mizell and offered a “half-handshake” before shots rang out, leaving the musician with a fatal head wound, Rincon said.

“[Mizell] essentially fell on him and Little D had to shake him off himself,” Rincon testified, adding that he suffered a gunshot wound to his left leg during the fracas.

Rincon, who worked with Mizell in his studio, testified that he recognized Jordan, who was Mizell’s godson, by his profile and neck tattoo on the night of the shooting.

Jordan and Washington, who guarded the door and held back a hysterical Lydia Hyde — Mizell’s “righthand” and friend, who is also expected to testify — at the door before bolting out, Rincon said on the stand.

Prosecutors have alleged that Porter and Washington’s ambush of Mizell was fueled by “greed and revenge” after the pair were stiffed from a drug deal in Baltimore.

Rincon said he feared for both his and his mother’s safety in the aftermath, explaining why he repeatedly told law enforcement that he didn’t know who gunned down the famed musician.

He finally admitted on May 2, 2017 that Jordan was the alleged killer — saying that Mizell’s family deserved to know the truth.

“I felt that [Mizell’s] wife and children needed closure and they should know what took place,” he testified.

Jordan’s attorney, Mark DeMarco, tried prodding Rincon for reasons about why he continued to lie to police and federal authorities for years, including telling police at the hospital on the night of the murder that he hadn’t recognized the shooter.

Rincon had described the shooter differently at least twice to law enforcement, according to DeMarco.

“I was scared and I couldn’t believe what I saw,” Rincon explained.

Rincon also revealed that Jordan allegedly approached him and his mother at Mizell’s funeral at Ferncliff Cemetery in Hartsdale and played dumb about the murder.

“[He] asked me who did it,” Rincon testified. “I felt like he was probing if I saw him.”