Teen gunman guilty of manslaughter in ‘outrageous’ Queen St. shootout that killed rapper Smoke Dawg - Toronto Star

Although now 24, the gunman cannot be identified under the Youth Criminal Justice Act because of his age at the time.

Toronto rapper Jahvante Smart, back, in the Blue Jays cap, moments before a shoot-out with Abdulkadir Handule, standing in white shorts with ski goggles. (K.J., the then-16-year-old teen convicted Thursday, is not pictured.)

More than eight years after gunfire erupted on a crowded section of Queen Street West, a second man has been convicted in the deaths of Jahvante Smart, the Toronto rapper known as Smoke Dawg, and Ernest Modekwe, a brand manager and fixture in Toronto’s hip hop community.

However, the judge found that K.J. — 16 at the time of the fatal shootings on June 30, 2018 — was guilty of two counts of the reduced charge of manslaughter rather than second-degree murder, as alleged by the prosecution. He was also convicted of aggravated assault for wounding a third victim who survived.

Although now 24, the identity of K.J. is protected under the Youth Criminal Justice Act because of his age at the time.

Seated in the prison’s box in a grey suit and glasses, K.J. shook hands with his defence team, led by lawyer Gary Grill, and bent forward in relief after the judge read the verdict.

In 2022, gunman Abdulkadir Handule was found guilty of two counts of second-degree murder after a jury trial. He is serving a life sentence.

21-year-old Rapper Jahvante Smart, left, who performed as Smoke Dawg, and 28-year-old manager Ernest (Kosi) Modekwe, known as Koba Prime.

K.J.‘s actions, firing eight shots down a busy street in the direction of fleeing people, were “outrageous and demonstrate high moral blameworthiness” and were a “significant contributing cause of Mr. Smart and Mr. Modekwe’s death,” Superior Court Justice Michael Dineen said, reading his decision in court Thursday. 

“However, given my conclusion that it has not been proven that he fired the fatal shots or that he had the requisite mens rea for murder, I find that he is guilty of the lesser included offence of manslaughter.”

Dineen explained he could find no direct evidence that K.J. intended to kill anyone, or that he and Handule discussed a plan to shoot Smart.

Moreover, the judge said he cannot find that any of the shots fired by K.J. struck anyone above the leg. As well, the judge said he finds it reasonably possible that Handule fired both shots that killed the two men.

The judge said he also took into account the fact K.J. was 16 at the time, an age when someone “might impulsively fire eight shots without reflecting on the likely consequences.”

The trial took place this summer. No witnesses were called, and the evidence was in the form of an agreed statement of facts incorporating extensive videos capturing the shocking events in broad daylight.

The violence erupted shortly before 8 p.m. near Queen Street West and Peter Street outside a now long-closed nightclub hosting a rooftop party.

A still from surveillance video shows Abdulkadir Handule wielding a handgun amid Queen St. traffic moments before running toward and killing Jahvante Smart.

A striking photograph presented as evidence at Handule’s trial captured Smart leaning against a metal barrier, seeming to make eye contact with Handule before the gunfire.

Over the next few minutes, Handule and Smart became engaged in a heated argument, and at one point Handule threw something — possibly a cigarette — in the rapper’s direction. Smart immediately produced a gun and started firing, causing mass panic on the street. Smart and Modekwe then ran west, and Handule and K.J. fired numerous shots in their direction.

After both men dropped to the ground, Handule fired three more shots, one striking Smart, 21, fatally in the back of the head. Modekwe, 28, sustained a single gunshot wound.

The judge noted that while Smart initially fired six shots in the “general direction” of Handule — while both were surrounded by a crowd of people — he nonetheless hit nobody. “It seems to me that it is reasonably possible that Mr. Smart was not trying to inflict fatal injuries, but rather was trying to frighten off Mr. Handule who had been menacing him.”

K.J. fled after the shooting. A Canada-wide warrant was issued, and he was arrested in Alberta in January 2025.

A sentencing hearing is scheduled for Nov. 25.

Betsy Powell is a Toronto-based reporter covering crime and courts for the Star. Follow her on Twitter: @powellbetsy.