Photo: Spencer Platt / Getty Images News / Getty Images
O'Shae Sibley was voguing to Beyoncé at a Brooklyn gas station. He was killed for it. On Monday (June 8), a jury said that was a hate crime.
Dmitriy Popov, now 20, was convicted of first-degree manslaughter as a hate crime for the July 2023 stabbing death of Sibley, 28, following a three-week trial in Brooklyn Supreme Court. According to The Associated Press, the jury also convicted Popov of second-degree menacing, second-degree aggravated harassment, and criminal possession of a weapon.
Popov was 17-years-old when he and others directed racist and homophobic slurs at Sibley and his friends, who had been dancing and voguing to Beyoncé music after returning from a beach outing at a Mobil gas station on Coney Island Avenue in Midwood, Brooklyn. The two groups argued briefly before appearing to separate — but Popov stayed behind. Witnesses testified he continued shouting insults while recording on his phone. Sibley returned to confront him. Seconds later, Popov stabbed him with a five-and-a-half-inch blade.
Popov testified he acted in self-defense. Prosecutors said the evidence told a different story — that Popov was the aggressor from the start, and that Sibley died because he and his friends had the audacity to exist openly as Black gay men.
The jury acquitted Popov of the more serious charge of second-degree murder as a hate crime, which carried the possibility of a life sentence. He now faces a minimum of eight years and a maximum of 25 years in prison. Sentencing is set for June 30. Defense attorney Mark Pollard said he plans to appeal.
Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez said in a statement: "O'Shae Sibley moved to New York to pursue his dream of being a dancer and choreographer, and his life was cut short when he was killed by this defendant, who couldn't stand the sight of O'Shae and his friends just being themselves and living their lives openly as Black gay men." He added: "It is my hope that as the LGBTQ+ community celebrates the beginning of Pride Month, this verdict will bring O'Shae's family, his friends, and the larger community some measure of solace. Hate has no place in Brooklyn."
Sibley was a Philadelphia native who performed with the dance company Philadanco and trained with the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater's extension program in New York. His work included "Soft: A Love Letter to Black Queer Men," a piece choreographed to celebrate Black queer identity. His funeral drew nearly 200 people.
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