Grammy-Nominated Singer Jubilant Sykes Fatally Stabbed; Son With Reported History of ‘Mental Instability’ Arrested
Grammy-Nominated Singer Jubilant Sykes Fatally Stabbed; Son With Reported History of ‘Mental Instability’ Arrested
Grammy-nominated classical baritone Jubilant Sykes was stabbed to death inside his Santa Monica home Monday evening in what authorities are calling an isolated domestic incident involving his son.
Police responded after a third party called 911 to report an assault in progress. When officers entered the residence, they found Sykes, 71, suffering from “critical injuries consistent with a stabbing.”
Sykes was pronounced dead at the scene despite emergency efforts. His death immediately launched a homicide investigation.
Inside the home, officers located his son, 31-year-old Micah Sykes, and took him into custody without incident. Investigators also recovered the suspected stabbing weapon on site.
Micah was booked on suspicion of homicide and is being held on $2 million bail, according to online jail records. The case will be presented to the Los Angeles County District Attorney for possible formal charges.
Santa Monica Police emphasized in a statement that the killing appears to be an “isolated incident” within a private residence and that there is “no ongoing threat to the community.”
Court documents reveal that Micah had been the subject of a restraining order in 2017, when a Southern California woman accused him of threatening and erratic behavior. She wrote that he “shows signs of mental instability” and had “been violent with his own family members.”
Jubilant Sykes was a celebrated performer best known for his role as the Celebrant in the Grammy-nominated 2009 recording of Leonard Bernstein’s Mass. Gramophone magazine once hailed him as “the best of all possible Celebrants.”
