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Cro-Mags Members Stabbed By Former Member At New York Gig

Two current members of the Cro-Mags have been stabbed… by an ex-member. It happened at the CBGB Festival in New York, when William Berario and Michael Couls were attacked by former bassist Harley Flanagan.

Cover Photo: Harley Flanagan is led into custody. Pic from New York Post

Flanagan himself suffered a broken leg and has now been charged with two counts of second-degree assault. Neither Berario nor Couls have life-threatening injuries.

“They think they’re going to play my fucking music that I helped write?” the berserk bassist allegedly said before stabbing and biting the two current band members.

Victims Berario and Couls had to be stitched up at Bellevue Hospital.

Lead singer and band co-founder John ‘Bloodclot’ Joseph told the New York Post: “He’s been telling people that he was going to do this shit. Nobody in the band likes him.”

“He tells everybody he founded the band,” Joseph continued. “We founded the band.”

Hella Rock Festival

To the Cro-Mags, Joseph claims, Flanagan is nothing more than a thief who’s stolen “tens of thousands of dollars” from the band and an agitator who causes problems wherever he went.

The band toured in 1986, and Flanagan pocketed every cent, Joseph claimed, according to the NYP.

“That caused me to lose my apartment and be homeless in 1987,” he said. “I lived hand to mouth.”

The band made a statement after the event: “WE… as a band are truly sorry for the way it all turned out in every regard even the ex-member who’s family is now effected by his choices. Our prayers go out to them as well as Mike C., and the others who were hurt, but it was ‘his’ choice to come to our concert with a hunting knife, standing by our dressing door.

“Who knows what his actual intent was, obviously he wasn’t there with it to cut bread for a peace offering as he was heard saying outside he was putting an end to us playing without him.

“Let’s move on now & stop the trash-talking. Keep that PMA – that’s what we are all about.”

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