Headline News
Man Arrested in COC Concert Stabbing, Doesn't Know if He Stabbed Someone or Not
Band Photo: Corrosion of Conformity (?)
The arrest and booking information of the suspect arrested Saturday morning (June 25) in connection with the stabbings at CORROSION OF CONFORMITY concert in Ybor City Thursday night (June 23) has been posted online at the web site of the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office. You can check it out at this location.
Michael John Pyne (photo), 39, of Pinellas Park, turned himself in early Saturday morning, Tampa Police spokesman Joe Durkin said in a press release. Pyne is charged with murder, attempted murder, aggravated battery, and aggravated assault, according to TBO.com.
Four people were stabbed during a fight Thursday night during a concert inside The Masquerade. Thomas Laskas, 29, died of his injuries early Friday morning at Tampa General Hospital. Witnesses said Laskas was trying to break up the fight.
Police said Pyne admitted to being at the club and having a knife but told detectives that he does not remember anything after seeing his girlfriend in a fight.
Pyne is being held without bond at the Hillsborough County Jail.
Michael Dunn of the Tampa Tribune has issued the following report:
Saying he "blacked out" and "may have" pulled a knife on concertgoers, a 39-year-old Pinellas Park man was charged Saturday in a nightclub stabbing spree Thursday that left one person dead and others injured.
Michael John Pyne (photo), of 6089 81st Ave. N., is being held without bail in the Orient Road Jail, charged with first- degree murder, attempted murder, aggravated battery and other crimes.
Pyne has a lengthy criminal record that includes convictions on weapons and narcotics charges, as well as battery on a law enforcement officer.
Tampa police detectives were able to track him down through witnesses, and because he apparently was handing out business cards promoting a tattoo parlor prior to the incident, officials said. Pyne is a tattoo artist at Rat-a-Tac-Tat Tattooing in Dunedin.
Tampa police contacted Pyne and asked him to come in for questioning, police spokesman Joe Durkin said.
Pyne was arrested at police headquarters about 3 a.m. Saturday, Durkin said.
During questioning, Durkin said, Pyne told detectives: "I don't know if I stabbed somebody or not, but I may have."
The multiple stabbings occurred about 11:30 p.m. Thursday during a concert at the Masquerade nightclub in Ybor City.
Pyne's girlfriend and another woman got into a fight during the show, witnesses said.
Bartender Dallas Ashe was trying to break up the fight when Pyne intervened and began stabbing concertgoers, police said.
Pyne stabbed Tommy Laskas, 29, of Seminole Heights, several times in the upper body with a pocketknife, police said. He also stabbed Laskas' wife, Wendy, 30, police said.
Pyne stabbed Ashe and Nicholas Stegall, 21, and attempted to stab two other men before fleeing the nightclub, police said.
Tommy Laskas died of his injuries Friday. Wendy Laskas was listed in fair condition Saturday at Tampa General Hospital.
During police questioning, Pyne acknowledged being at the nightclub and possessing a knife, Durkin said.
"He said all he remembers is his girlfriend got into a fight," Durkin said. "He remembers pulling her away, but he blacked out after that and said he doesn't remember what happened after that."
Durkin said that to his knowledge, the Masquerade's security staff did not pat down concertgoers or use a metal detector.
Club attorney Luke Lirot told the Tribune on Friday the nightclub employs tight security for such concerts, which featured the band CORROSION OF CONFORMITY.
Lirot could not be reached for additional comment on Saturday.
Tommy and Wendy Laskas and Stegall worked together at Mean Machine Tattoo Co., 3415 S. Dale Mabry Highway.
The shop was closed Saturday. Two bouquets of roses lay on the ground at the shop's door. A handwritten sign said the business was closed "due to a loss in the family."
CORROSION OF CONFORMITY guitarist/vocalist Pepper Keenan has posted the following message on the band's official web site:
"People are fighting for their lives right now due to last night's events. We need everyone to focus their positive energies towards these individuals to help them, and everybody affected, pull through this tragedy.
"This is not what it's supposed to be about."
Source: Blabbermouth
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56 Comments on "Man Arrested in COC Concert Stabbing"
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Member
How the f*** can you not know if you STABBED SOMEONE??? You have to use some force to shove a knife into a person's flesh...and you would definitely be able to feel the contact. I think you would be able to remember something like a stabbing. He must have been smoking some grass.
I agree with Deathbringer...nothing too great about senselessly stabbing a dude.
Plenty of rappers want to be associated with senseless violence...for example...50 Cent brags about being shot 9 times in that horse sh** he tries to pass off as music. Metalheads have more sense than that. Except the guy who did the stabbing. Metal is just more real than any other kind of music to me..and most likely to others.
With all due respect dude, that's not metal. Neither Dimebag getting shot. sh** like this give bad cred to Metal comunity. Come on man, praising murder?? I can understand being anti-religion also, cause I dislike church but Rape Jesus?? ...Somebody wants attention.
im supporting it or anything but look at bands like slayer okay. First off if you guys dont like them then you guys arent metal at all, second in some of their videos like bloodline it shows them getting covered in blood, blasphemy(some preacher getting off by giving a girl communion) and a cat licking up blood all of which i like but it is obscene and tasteless, and that is what metal was founded on and is about. Metalheads not only listen top metal but play metal to get hatered and anger out of their system before they freak out and kill someone, some poeple dont get that so....
Supporter
I would not call it Metal I'd call it getting even plaine and simple.I understand the need to get it out but if your at the show.Then clearly your in the process of doing so.What do you really need to do it for real for ? He saide his girl was getting jumped I understand that but not remembering anything else.I'm not so sure if I can get behind that one.
THAT'S IT! He's guilty! He just said "He MAY have stabbed someone!| He must be lying! He should go straight to his death. He set himself up for that one! HO ho ho ho HOOOOOOO! Oh yeah. No trial. No jury. Just plain good ol' mutha-fu in' execution baby!!!! WOO HOO! MUthafackaz!
Writer/Reviewer
Well, it sounds like this guy has a history anyway. Whether he likes hip-hop, metal or polka the band playing at the event would have been rolled into the story anyway.
Violence with a point isnt metal, it's just understandable....lashing out at strangers however, is not understandable.
FaHt, you are the most ignorant person I've ever corresponded with on this site(yes, everyone, Muffy isn't THAT ignorant).
I meant that his statement doesn't go with the evidence, especially after he's said that someone was hitting on his girlfriend. He has a history, which actually helps to prove that he's involved somehow because he changed his statement.
Why change your statement if you turned yourself in?
Metal is an outlet for anger, hatred and what ever else. Not a source or inspiration for murder. Bands like Slayer may play shows and shoot videos covered in blood, but they never killed anyone (that we know of). They're just getting some sh** off their shoulders.
Rape Jesus, you're an idiot.
Faht, your lust for vengeance is understandable. But, kind of contradicting what we're trying to say in these posts.
RIP Dime!
Satan101 and metal101.. ive never heard so much sh** in my life =D if u dont listen 2 slayer ur not metal.. HJAHAHAHHAHAHA but i listen 2 exodus, testament, sanctuary, heathen, nuclear assault.. am i not f***ing metal u a$$ hole! lol.. and 2ndly.. the people who make thrash.. do u see them killing? answer that dumb f***!!! u aint no thrasher lol good bye!
FaHt, what I meant by calling you ignorant, and I still mean it, is that this statement......
"THAT'S IT! He's guilty! He just said "He MAY have stabbed someone!| He must be lying! He should go straight to his death. He set himself up for that one! HO ho ho ho HOOOOOOO! Oh yeah. No trial. No jury. Just plain good ol' mutha-fu in' execution baby!!!! WOO HOO! MUthafackaz!"
I understand you want Pyne's head to be chopped off and probably served on a silver platter, but, these things take time. The Justice System isn't as fast as it should be and now the investigation will take longer becuase Pyne changed his statements. The investigators now have to look at other leads because he "may or may not have stabbed someone."
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True Old Skool Metal, you are ignorant also. No one has to listen to Testament and Slayer is be your definition of "Metal."
I could be a robot and you still would call me "unmetal."
C'mon people stay on the topic..This is not about Slipknot being metal or any other band for that matter. Don't start putting your music preferences on a topic clearly about a violent incident in a Corrosion of Conformity concert. So I really don't understand why I see people mentioning Slipknot or Slayer for that matter. FaHT may be an ignorant, but at least he's on the topic at hand.
Just my 2 cents.
READ THIS POST! Um, it's pretty idiotic. No one wants metal to be associtated with senseless violence. Metal already gets a bad rap and gives many of us one as well for liking it. THIS is coming from some dude calling himself "deathbringer" Does anyone else see the humor in this?
Founder, owner & programmer
For some background, deathbringer was a name I was using back when I was doing online gaming (Quake), and also the name of a weapon in a game I produced while at Epic Games (Fire Fight). It also has some sarcastic/mocking meaning in trying to sound evil or about death in that there were quite a few people who would constantly make remarks about metal being only about death and killing, etc. On a personal level, I do this thing quite often in real life where I will seemingly (mockingly) embrace a stereotype (or make comments to that effect) that I totally don't agree with just to mock its absurdity. Those who know me, know I'm being sarcastic, but those who don't, don't. (it's also a way of pushing away judgemental people who don't really know me, as I don't want much to do with them)
So in effect, yeah, I like the screenname I've chosen on may levels (history, it sounds "metal", and it's mocking at the same time. Despite that, I am a proponent of responsibility and do not condone senseless violence in any way.
There's a little window into me... ;-)
you people are a bunch of p***ies. metal is about violence of all types, senseless or not. and murdering people at concerts is totally metal. anything abhorrent and terrible that results in death is metal, including september 11th. the Dark Lord laughs at this world and the drones like you. now listen to varg and go burn a church. or kill your mom or something. \m/ 666 \m/
Member
Since when has senceless violence not been associated with metal? I mean, where do you people get off thinking that metal is all about peace and well being? Have any of you really listened to the lyrics of Pantera or Slayer or slipknot? All of them have songs that speak of murder and violence and anarchy.
so I guess seeing slipknot smashing themselves on stage is a promotion for peace.
Or mayhem's Dead blowing his brains out or the burzum fella killing euronemous or any of the church burning sh** that inspired the black metal scene are the actions of people who believe violence is stupid?? I don't buy it. The first time I got served a beating was in a pantera pit...so quit talking sh**.
The central underlying message in metal cannot possibly be peace.
Founder, owner & programmer
Sure there is a lot of violence in metal, but a lot of it is about release, revenge, retribution, violence against your oppressor, etc. Even much of the anti-Christian stuff can fall into the latter category. No one said metal was about peace or not about voilence. It's not all about senseless violence, and even if some of it is, a band's fans should not expect to fall prey to senseless violence in the manner that these stabbing victims did. The man arrested can't even f***ing remember if he stabbed someone, so it was certainly none of the former and seems pretty senseless to me.
man all you guys are off man. what metal is truly about differs from band to band. you cannot tell me what a pantera song is truly about if you arent in the band and didnt right the songs. and what sounds like sensless violence in music to one could sound like a release to another. its all opinion and everyone has one and they differ. and by the way slipknot is f***in awesome and is f***in metal. i dont give a f*** if it is main stream. its still heavy as hell and still makes bad a$$ music for a massive pit. and that is metal i dont give a f*** who you are.
i was at the concert where those ppl where stabbed. as far as "what is being metal" metal isnt killing some one thats for sure. and as far as "knowing what the songs represent and what the bands represent" its all a show, grow up, and i hate to break it to u but santa claus isnt real either. NOT ALL but some death metal and hard core metal bands go to church and worship god, and it is there job to put on a show and write music. i do know a lot of death metal bands personally (like slayer) and im not going to sit here and tell u that they are going to church but there life isnt what they write in the music. and there is no reason to take somones life regardless. Unless they are sentenced to death, i do agree with the death penalty. but let the system do what they have to do. metal is agressive and it is a way to release agression BUT not to kill, no one should be stabbed or SHOT (RIP DIMEBAG) and u all are way off the topic, this man if he did the stabbing should be punished and if he didnt he should be let go, but he should have a fair trial. but i do agree how can u not know if u stabbed someone, and if u "blacked out" out shouldnt of drank that much or taken those drugs!! By the way slayer never made someone or told someone to do all those violent things, a guy contacted them and told them he wanted to do it and they just watched.
dudes, the problem isn't just in metal shows or at that rap crap shows. RESPECT each other. We live with some f**ked up folks in the world who feel they need to carry weapons to compensate for their fear.
Long live all METAL GODS and everyone who loves everything metal. Keep it real.
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This stuff makes me sick to my stomach. Don't these happen at rap shows. I think the dosage of whatever medication these wackos are on should have there doctors up the dosage on there medicines. Have fun, leave the toys at home and try not to kill each other.