Overview
- A jury found Dmitriy Popov guilty on Monday, June 8, 2026, of first‑degree manslaughter as a hate crime while acquitting him of a murder charge.
- Jurors also convicted Popov of second‑degree menacing, second‑degree aggravated harassment and fourth‑degree criminal possession of a weapon, charges that together carry a potential sentence of up to 25 years.
- The case stems from a July 29, 2023 confrontation at a Midwood Mobil where prosecutors say Popov and others shouted racist and anti‑gay slurs at O'Shae Sibley and his friends before Popov fatally stabbed Sibley.
- Prosecutors relied on security‑camera footage that captured the encounter and on multiple eyewitness accounts while Popov testified that he acted in self‑defense and was 17 at the time but was tried as an adult.
- Sibley was a professional dancer whose death prompted vigils and public tributes and the verdict raises questions about hate‑crime enforcement and community safety as New York observes Pride Month with a sentencing hearing scheduled for June 30.