Within a few feet of Jay when he was shot were Randy Allen, his sister Lydia High, Uriel “Tony” Rincon, who was playing a video game next to Jay and aspiring hip-hop artist Michael “Mike B” Bonds.
Despite their proximity, none ever identified the killer, the New York Daily News reported in October 2019.
Randy Allen was Jam’s longtime business partner and friend. Some people close to Jam said they were in a dispute over money. He was best man at Jam’s wedding. Allen is said to have used his friendship with Jay for financial gain including landing his sister a job as Jay’s office manager.
Lydia High was Jay’s office manager and everyone knew she buzzed people into the studio. She was the studio bookkeeper and secretary.
Rincon was a homeless friend of Jay’s who slept in the studio, Playboy reported.
Allen and Jay were working on a project — a duo called Rusty Waters — consisting of Allen and Jay’s nephew, Rodney “Boe Skagz” Jones. Their debut album was due at Virgin Records within days. Randy sent Boe to the barbershop to get a haircut for an upcoming promotional tour before the killers entered the studio.
After the shooting, High told the police that the shooter had a tattoo on his neck. Little D has a tattoo on his neck. Washington has always said that the killer was Little D. From 2002, people were saying Washington was in on the murder.
“The streets is watching, but nobody’s talking,” MTV.com reported in an article about the stalled investigation.
“It’s bullshit to say that the street don’t talk,” Scoon told Playboy. “The street always talks.” Just not necessarily to law enforcement officials.
