New Haven Hip Hop Artist Charged With Murder

A popular New Haven hip hop artist accused of killing a Hamden man in his apartment on Circular Avenue last month has been charged with murder.

Police and the U.S. Marshals arrested 38-year-old Nicholas Papantoniou, also known by his stage name "Nickel P," early Tuesday morning on Stonybrook Road in Stratford.

Papantoniou is accused of shooting and killing 56-year-old Larry Dildy on Oct. 19.

Police said Papantoniou and William Coutermash, 33, knocked on the door of Dildy's second-floor apartment that afternoon and got into a fight during which Dildy was shot.

Members of the U.S. Marshal Service Connecticut Violent Fugitive Task Force, along with Bridgeport and Stratford officers, arrested Papantoniou around 5:45 a.m. Tuesday after a month-long investigation in an attempt to track him down.

He was taken to Hamden police headquarters and charged with felony murder, home invasion, conspiracy to commit home invasion, conspiracy to commit first-degree robbery, criminal possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and removing identification marks from a firearm.

Coutermash was charged with felony murder after the shooting, although authorities consider him a conspirator and said Papantoniou is suspected of pulling the trigger.

Residents familiar with the city's music scene say Papantoniou is a hip-hop performer who has played concerts in the area for years.

"Nickel P's" public Facebook page says his "music and lyrics are the perfect example of art imitating life" and promotes his performances, including some at popular New Haven music venue Toad's Place.

Police haven't released any information about the relationship between Dildy and the suspects but said the attack does not appear to be random.

Court records show that Papantoniou has been previously convicted on drug, weapon and assault charges, among others. West Haven police are also working to arrest Papantoniou on unrelated assault charges.

He was held on a court-ordered $1 million bond and is due in court Dec. 9.

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