Veteran rapper Kidd Creole has been convicted in connection to the fatal stabbing of an NYC man that was homeless.
According to ABC 7, 62-year-old Creole—born Nathaniel Glover—was found guilty of first-degree manslaughter by a New York Supreme Court jury Wednesday. The Bronx native, who was also a member of legendary rap group Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, was arrested more than four years ago for allegedly stabbing 55-year-old John Jolly on the streets of Midtown, Manhattan.
The incident occurred right before midnight Aug. 1, 2017, as Creole was walking to his maintenance job. Creole told authorities the altercation began when Jolly, whom he had never met, approached him on the streets and said, “What’s up?”
“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?” Creole’s lawyer, Scottie Celestin, told the jury. “His fear for his life was reasonable.”
Creole’s attorney argued his client acted in self-defense when he pulled out a steak knife and stabbed Jolly twice in the chest. The victim was transported Bellevue Hospital, where he ultimately died. The defense claimed Jolly, who was allegedly intoxicated during the attack, sustained non-life-threatening stab wounds, and that his death was caused by a mix of alcohol and a sedative hospital staff had given him.
Prosecutors pushed back on the self-defense claims, and pointed to a police interview in which Creole allegedly admitted to attacking Jolly because he believed the man was hitting on him. During a 2021 interview with Source, Creole denied that his actions stemmed from homophobia.
“Now I’m fighting the image that they portrayed me as a person who’s intolerant of people with alternative lifestyles and that’s not true,” he told the magazine. “[...] They made me seem like I was the villain and the person who actually attacked me was the victim. How do they justify charging me with murder when this guy attacked me?”
Creole’s sentencing hearing is set for May 4.
