Jam Master Jay Murder: Fellow Victim Identifies Alleged Shooter At Trial

Uriel Rincon, the other man who was shot on the night of Jam Master Jay’s murder, testified in the alleged killers’ trial on Wednesday (January 31). Rincon identified Karl Jordan Jr. as the man who fatally shot Jam Master Jay in 2002.

“He kind of walked directly to Jay and gave—like half a handshake with an arm,” Rincon told jurors, per the Associated Press. “And at the same time, that’s when I hear a couple of shots … And then I see Jay just fall.”

Jordan and his co-defendant Ronald Washington are two of three men charged in Jam Master Jay’s murder. Jordan and Washington’s trial began on Monday (January 29). A third man, Jay Bryant, will be tried separately.

Prosecutors called Rincon, who was wounded in the 2002 shooting, to testify as the first eyewitness in the murder trial. He said Washington stood by the door in Jam Master Jay’s recording studio, ordering another witness to stay on the ground during the shooting.

“I’m trying to tend to my wound, and at the same time, I’m trying to give Jay attention,” Rincon said. “Asking him is he OK? Can he talk? Whatever. And he is just not responding.”

For years, Rincon claimed he could not identify the gunman. Rincon told jurors he was “confused and scared and not trusting a lot of things that were happening.” He recalled his shock because the shooter wasn’t a stranger.

“I didn’t understand what I saw, and I didn’t understand why or who because, again, it was somebody I knew,” Rincon testified. “So, that’s why it was hard for me to grasp.”

Roughly 15 years after the murder, Rincon revealed Jordan and Washington’s involvement to authorities. Rincon explained why he came forward with the information in his testimony.

“I felt that [Jam Master Jay’s] wife and his children needed closure,” he said. “And I felt that they should know what took place.”

Jordan and Washington face at least 20 years in prison if convicted of killing the Run-DMC DJ. Both men pleaded not guilty to murder charges.