​Grandmaster Flash and The Furious Five’s Kidd Creole found guilty of manslaughter

Grandmaster Flash and The Furious Five’s Kidd Creole has been found guilty of manslaughter after being convicted of the stabbing of a homeless man in 2017.

The rapper, real name Nathaniel Glover, was found guilty on Wednesday, April 6 following a conviction of first-degree manslaughter for a stabbing in New York’s Midtown Manhattan.

The 62-year-old began his trial over a week in New York City where, according to ABC’s eyewitness news, he was acting in defence when he murdered 55-year-old John Jolly.

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said on the case: "Nathaniel Glover committed a shocking act of violence.

“This conviction makes clear my office will hold people who commit violent crime accountable to the full extent of the law.”

The rapper, best known for his part in Grandmaster Flash and The Furious Five alongside the namesake artist, Melle Mel, Keef Cowboy, and others, claims that he murdered the homeless man after feeling threatened.

Prosecutors said that Glover became enraged after Jolly had asked him “what’s up?”, assuming that the man was gay and trying to hit on him. Glover stabbed Jolly twice in the chest.

The murder happened in August 2017 just after midnight, while Glover was on his way to his maintenance job in Midtown Manhattan.

Glover’s defence claimed that “his fear for his life was reasonable”. Glover's lawyer, Scottie Celestin, asked the jury: “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?”

Prosecutors argued that Glover had “confessed to pulling out a kitchen knife and repeatedly thrusting it into the body of a stranger on the street, killing him.”

"Was there anything that would prevent him from simply running away from Mr. Jolly? No,” asked Assistant District Attorney Mark Dahl. Glover is expected to be sentenced next month on May 4.

Gemma Ross is Mixmag's Editorial Assistant, follow her on Twitter