Prosecutors name alleged accomplice in Jam Master Jay shooting

U.S. prosecutors have identified a man who may be their best lead in the killing of Jam Master Jay of Run DMC back in 2002.

Court papers indicate prosecutors have pinpointed Ronald (Tenad) Washington as an alleged accomplice to a second gunman who shot Jay, whose real name was Jason Mizell, inside his New York studio.

Prosecutors would not comment on papers filed in early April in the trial of Washington, who was convicted in a series of armed robberiessince Jay's murder.

"We're relieved there's some information coming out, although we understand that it's not the full story," said Fern Yates, a spokesperson for the Mizell family.

During the 1980s, Run DMCwith Mizell, Joe (Run) Simmons and Darryl (DMC) McDaniels blasted onto the music scene as pioneers of rap with songs such as King of Rock, It's Tricky and a remake of Aerosmith's Walk This Way.

The papers indicate Washington, 45, denies any connection to Mizell's killing and said prosecutors were hounding him about the death of his "childhood friend" Mizell and other crimes.

Prosecutors have based their version of events on an unidentified performer who was at the studio at the time of the murder.The performer said a man wearing a black sweatsuit appeared, embraced Mizell, pulled out a .40-caliber pistol and opened fire.

The first round injured another person but a second bullet struck Mizell in the head.

The witness said Washington "pointed his gun at those present in the studio, ordered them to get on the ground and provided cover for his associate to shoot and kill Jason Mizell."

Washington has previously admitted being at the studio on the day Jay was killed because his friend had asked him to provide protection.

The papers say Washington lived in various motels after Mizell's death and held up several fast-food restaurants and other businesses with a pellet gun.

Meanwhile, a second person has told authorities Washington confessed to his role in Jay's murder, as well as the 1995 murder of Randy (Stretch) Walker, an associate of late rapper Tupac Shakur. Walker co-wrote several tracks that appeared on Shakur's posthumous Loyal to the Game release.

"They are trying to pen me up for these murders. It's all lies," Washington told the Boston Globe from his jail cell in Brooklyn.

Washington's case is part of an ongoing federal investigation examining violence in the rap industry. The investigation includes the 1997 drive-by shooting of Notorious B.I.G.,whose real name was Christopher Wallace.

A rival of Shakur, Wallacewas gunned down a year earlier.

Federal prosecutors are expected to make major announcements over the next several months about the inquiry.