A California man was found guilty on Wednesday of first-degree murder in the shooting death of Grammy-winning Los Angeles rapper Nipsey Hussle in 2019.
A 12-person jury in Los Angeles County convicted Eric Ronald Holder Jr of killing Hussle outside a clothing shop the rapper owned in south Los Angeles.
Prosecutors said Holder shot Hussle at least 10 times when the pair had a chance meeting on a Sunday afternoon in the neighbourhood in which they both grew up.
After a brief conversation, Holder left and returned about 10 minutes later and opened fire, killing Hussle and wounding two bystanders.
Public defender Aaron Jansen acknowledged that Holder killed the rapper but said he should not be convicted of first-degree murder because the attack was not premeditated.
Mr Jansen told jurors that Holder acted in “the heat of passion” after Hussle told him there were rumours of him “snitching” to police, which he considered a serious offence.
Holder did not testify during the trial.
Hussle, who was 33 when he died, publicly acknowledged that he joined a gang as a teenager.
He later became an activist and entrepreneur as he found success with rap music and collaborated with artists including Snoop Dogg and Drake.
In 2020, Hussle won two posthumous Grammy Awards including one for best rap performance for Racks in the Middle, released a few weeks before his death and featuring Roddy Ricch and Hit-Boy.
The jury also convicted Holder of two counts each of attempted voluntary manslaughter and assault with a firearm for wounding bystanders when he shot at Hussle.
He faces a maximum sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole. Sentencing was set for September 15.
