#rip Hip-Hop D.J. Is Killed on Staten Island

/www.nytimes.com

Published: March 27, 2011

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A hip-hop disc jockey who was a featured regular on a popular music-video show, “106 & Park,” was shot to death early Sunday morning a block from his home on Staten Island, the police said.

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Mary DiBiase Blaich for The New York Times

Derron Johnson placed a candle at the spot on Osgood Avenue where Corey McGriff, known as DJ Megatron, was fatally shot.

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Johnny Nunez/WireImage

Corey McGriff, known as DJ Megatron.

The victim, Corey McGriff, 32, who went by the name DJ Megatron, was well-known within Staten Island hip-hop circles as a promoter of up-and-coming artists, but was gaining wider recognition with his appearances on “106 & Park,” on Black Entertainment Television.

The police, responding to an emergency call, found Mr. McGriff dead on Osgood Avenue with a gunshot wound to his torso about 2 a.m. Sunday. The circumstances of the shooting were unclear on Sunday afternoon. A friend, Keith Robinson, said he believed it was a random killing.

“This was the wrong place at the wrong time,” said Mr. Robinson, the brother of Mr. McGriff’s fiancée, Shyleen Robinson.

On “106 & Park,” Mr. McGriff conducted man-on-the-street interviews on a variety of topics. He had previously worked at the radio station WQHT-FM (97.1), known as Hot 97. He often promoted Staten Island hip-hop artists on air, Mr. Robinson said. Earlier in his career, he had worked at radio stations in Boston and Philadelphia, friends said.

In recent weeks, Mr. McGriff had become engaged to Ms. Robinson, 24, with whom he had a 10-month-old son, Mr. Robinson said. Mr. McGriff also had a daughter and another son.

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