2 indicted in killing of Jam Master Jay

— Nearly two decades after the slaying of hip hop star Jam Master Jay, federal prosecutors said Monday they have solved one of New York City’s most enduring unsolved killings, charging two men while suggesting the artist, celebrated for his anti-drug stance, may have been ambushed over a cocaine deal.

The suspects were identified in court papers as Ronald Washington, who is currently serving a federal prison sentence stemming from a string of robberies he committed while on the run from police after Jay’s 2002 death, and Karl Jordan Jr., who is also charged with engaging in an alleged cocaine distribution conspiracy in 2017.

“This is a case that has been around for a long time,” Acting U.S. Attorney Seth DuCharme said at a news conference announcing the charges.

Washington, who had reportedly been living on a couch at Jay’s home in the days before the killing, was publicly named as a possible suspect or witness as far back as 2007. Prosecutors allege he waved a handgun around and ordered people in Jay’s Queens recording studio to lie on the ground, providing cover while Jordan fatally shot him in the head on Oct. 30, 2002.

Washington and Jordan were engaged in a conspiracy to distribute five kilograms of cocaine at the time of Jay’s killing, according to their indictment.

If convicted, Washington and Jordan each face a mandatory minimum sentence of 20 years in prison and a maximum of life in prison, or the death penalty.

Jordan is scheduled to be arraigned on Monday via teleconference. Washington, who is imprisoned in Kentucky, will be arraigned later this week, prosecutors said