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Furious Five Rapper Killed Homeless Man He Thought Hit on Him: Prosecutors

By  Ben Fractenberg and Katherine Lavacca | August 3, 2017 5:28pm 

 Furious Five rapper Nathaniel Glover during his arraignment on murder charges in Manhattan Criminal Court Thursday, Aug. 3, 2017.
Furious Five rapper Nathaniel Glover during his arraignment on murder charges in Manhattan Criminal Court Thursday, Aug. 3, 2017.
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Pool: Steven Hirsch/New York Post

CIVIC CENTER — A rapper in the legendary group Grand Master Flash and the Furious Five thought a homeless man hit on him before they got into an argument in Midtown and he fatally stabbed the man, prosecutors said during his arraignment in Manhattan Criminal Court Thursday.

Nathaniel Glover, 57, who rapped as Kidd Creole, claimed he first thought John Jolly, 55, made a pass after the two walked by each other Tuesday night near East 43rd Street and Lexington Avenue, according to an assistant district attorney.

The two men exchanged words and Glover, who had his earbuds in, then turned back around and approached Jolly, getting in his face. Jolly then told Glover all he said was "what's up," at which point the rapper pulled out a steak knife secured to his forearm with rubber bands and stabbed Jolly twice in the chest, according to prosecutors and NYPD officials. 

Jolly was seen on surveillance footage after the attack taking a swig of beer while a pool of blood was seen forming on his chest.

The homeless man then walked several blocks before collapsing in the street.  

Glover ran to a nearby building where he worked and changed his clothes. He then washed the knife in a bathroom sink and threw away paper towels he used to clean the weapon, according to the ADA. 

He then told his employer, TransPerfect, he had to leave and walked a different way back to the subway to avoid the crime scene, prosecutors said. He got off the train near his Mount Hope home and threw the knife down a sewage drain. 

Investigators were able to identify Glover, who is the brother of another famed rapper, Melle Mel, through the surveillance footage and busted him Wednesday.

He was charged with second-degree murder.

Glover had three prior arrests for criminal possession of a weapon. 

Jolly, who had lived in a shelter on the Bowery until 2016, was remembered as a "good person."

"I was sad when I found out this morning," said Robert Pensa, 28, who knew Jolly from the shelter. "He was a very quiet guy. He kept to himself and never caused problems."

Glover was held without bail and is due back in court on Aug. 8. 

His defense attorney, Patrick Watts, declined to comment when approached by reporters after the arraignment.