Tay-K has been found guilty of murder for a second time and faces the prospect of spending the rest of his life in prison.
The 24-year-old, who is already serving a 55-year sentence for a separate murder conviction, has now been convicted of fatally shooting photographer Mark Anthony Saldivar in 2017.
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Tay-K (real name Taymor McIntyre) was found guilty of murder but was acquitted of capital murder, which would have resulted in a life sentence without the chance of parole.
Saldivar was killed while Tay-K (real name Taymor McIntyre) was on the run from authorities after escaping house arrest.
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The murder conviction carries a prison sentence of between five and 99 years.
A jury will determine Tay-K’s sentence, while the judge will rule if “The Race” rapper will serve his prison time concurrently or consecutively.
During the trial, Tay-K was identified as the shooter by witness and former girlfriend, Joanna Reyes.
Reyes was herself accused of being the driver in the 2017 shooting, but turned government witness and accepted a plea deal on the lesser charge of tampering with evidence.
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During her testimony, Reyes described how she had set up a photoshoot for Tay-K with Saldivar, with the three of them plus Jalen Bell and Jeremiah Rodriguez in one vehicle.
Reyes claimed that Tay-K pulled out a gun on Saldivar and demanded his backpack. The photographer refused, which is when the group allegedly began assaulting him.
The melee led to Saldivar climbing onto the hood of the car and, according to Reyes, Tay-K pointing the gun at her and ordering that she get him down.
Reyes then claimed that after she failed to do so, Tay-K leaned out of the car and shot Saldivar.
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“He opened the door and leaned out on one leg,” she told jurors. “He shot him.”
Reyes then testified that she did not initially report the shooting out of fear for her safety and that Tay-K had threatened her and her family.
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Tay-K, who rose to fame with the platinum-certified hit “The Race,” was previously convicted on a different murder charge relating to a 2016 home invasion.
In that case, he was sentenced to 30 years in prison for aggravated robbery and given two additional 13-year sentences on two other counts of aggravated robbery. Those sentences are being served concurrently.
