Kidd Creole Sentenced To 16 Years In 2017 Stabbing Death Of Homeless Man In Manhattan

One of the founding member of Grandmaster Flash and The Furious Five has been sentenced following his manslaughter conviction in New York City.

Kidd Creole, whose given name is Nathaniel Glover, was sentenced on Wednesday to 16 years in prison for the stabbing death of John Jolly, 55, in 2017, according to the Associated Press. 

Creole, 63, was convicted of manslaughter in April. Prosecutors say that he stabbed Jolly, a homeless man, twice in the chest with a steak knife shortly before midnight on Aug. 1, 2017 near the corner of East 44th Street and 3rd Avenue — a block east of Grand Central Station.

Creole was on his way to work at a maintenance job when Jolly said, "What's up?", New York ABC affiliate WABC reported; prosecutors argued that Creole confessed to police that he thought Jolly was hitting on him, according to People, and that allegedly made him angry.

A criminal complaint obtained by Oxygen.com says that Creole "pulled out a knife that he had attached to his forearm with rubber bands and stabbed the decedent in the chest with the knife two times."

His defense team argued that the stabbing was in self-defense.

“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?” Scottie Celestin, Creole's defense attorney said in court, according to local news station PIX11. “His fear for his life was reasonable.”

Prosecutors argued otherwise.

"The defendant confessed to pulling out a kitchen knife and repeatedly thrusting it into the body of a stranger on the street, killing him," claimed Assistant District Attorney Mark Dahl at trial, according to Deadline and WABC. "Was there anything that would prevent him from simply running away from Mr. Jolly? No."

Jolly was found by tourists, who called 911, but he died of his wounds in the hospital.

Creole reported to his job after the stabbing, changed clothes and washed the knife, the complaint adds. 

According to WABC, Creole left his job after 15 minutes and boarded a Bronx-bound subway train, discarding the knife in a sewer near the station.

He was arrested the following day.

At his sentencing on Wednesday, Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Michele Rodney took specific issue with Creole's self defense claims.

"You didn’t know him," she told Creole, according to Deadline. "You didn’t know that he had a [history of] violence or was a sexual offender. Those things were not known and don’t have much relevance in terms of anybody’s action in this case."

"A life is a life, whether the person is homeless, whether the person is a CEO," she added.

Creole had faced up to 25 years in prison, but prosecutors had asked for 18, noting Creole's contrition in his original statements to police, according to the New York Times.

"I was taken aback by the manner with which he seemed to understand what he had done," said ADA Dahl, while also expressing frustration that Creole had rejected a plea deal.

Creole's defense attorney express confidence the verdict would be overturned on appeal, according to their statement to People.

"There are many appealable issues, specifically the denial of Mr. Glover being able to assert the justification of self defense, despite the fact that he was retreating and the victim followed behind him," Celestin told the outlet.

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg issued a statement acknowledging Jolly after the sentencing.

"Every life we lose to violent crime ripples throughout our entire city, and we will continue to ensure everyone in our borough can live their lives with the sense of safety and security they deserve," it read, according to the AP.