Dmitry Popov, the man accused of killing New York City dancer O’Shae Sibley following an altercation at a petrol station in 2023, has told a court he acted in self-defence.
Popov gave evidence during his trial this week, denying hate crime motivations alleged by prosecutors and claiming he stabbed Sibley out of fear for his own safety. Sibley, a 28-year-old dancer and choreographer, was stabbed during an altercation at a petrol station in Brooklyn on 29 July 2023 and later died from his injuries.
Sibley had been refuelling a vehicle with a group of friends after returning from a birthday celebration at the Jersey Shore.
The group were playing Beyonce’s Renaissance album and voguing when they were approached by a group of males who allegedly took offence to their dancing.
Witnesses have testified that members of the other group shouted homophobic and racist statements and accused the dancers of being offensive to their Islamic religious beliefs.
In social media posts, Sibley’s friends said he had been trying to de-escalate the situation when he was stabbed. Popov later handed himself in to police after the case attracted global media attention.
Popov has pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder as a hate crime.
“I was scared that I was going to get hurt,” Popov told the court, according to reporting by The New York Times.
While admitting he stabbed Sibley, Popov denied using gay slurs during the confrontation. He said he did not approve of the language allegedly used by others in his group and claimed he had been entertained by the dancing.
Popov testified that he recorded the impromptu performance on his phone, capturing footage of one of Sibley’s friends, Otis Pena.
“At first, it was funny to me, a guy was dancing with his butt out,” Popov told the court. He said he later threw his phone away, meaning the footage was no longer available.
Popov claimed Sibley and his friends surrounded his group and alleged that Sibley punched him in the head before he stabbed him in self-defence. He was armed with a kitchen knife that punctured Sibley’s heart. Sibley was pronounced dead shortly after the incident.
Under questioning from prosecutor Sarah Jafari, Popov said members of Sibley’s group had lied during their testimony. Six witnesses have testified that Popov used slurs referring to race and sexuality.
“In a self-defence case, obviously nobody wants anyone to die, but at that moment, as a 17-year-old boy thinking like a 17-year-old boy, he did what he thought was reasonable and necessary,” defence attorney Mark Pollard said. “He thought about this in seconds, and that’s how we ended up here.”
Popov was 17 years old at the time of the offence but has been charged as an adult. If convicted, he faces life imprisonment.
