He even remembered telling her, Ill see you later, honey. However, their dream relationship quickly turned to horror. When Nancy Argentinos older sister Lorraine Salome was reached by phone, she said she wasnt at all surprised when she got the dreaded call informing her that the judge dismissed charges against the ex-wrestler. In August 2015: Carole, the third wife of Jimmy Snuka, says that he has stomach cancer. The case remains open to this day. Nobody Ive spoken to from Argentinos sisters, to law enforcement officers, to Snukas lawyer has any recollection of this or anything related, such as the judge rejecting the proposed plea deal. President Donald Trump appointed him to an advisory group dedicated to reopening the country during the coronavirus pandemic, allwhile WWE has continued running its weekly live wrestling Florida has deemed WWE an essential business without a live audience. , an ebook that Argentinos sisters collaborated on with, , who had been doing the seminal reporting on the case. Due to COVID-19 and current government mandated impacts on WWE and the media business generally, the Company went through an extensive evaluation of its operations over the past several weeks, a statement from the company reads. Specifically, those other incidents of domestic abuse were that of Snuka hospitalizing his then-wife Sharon in September 1983 (no charges filed, but testified to by both Sharon and then-neighbor Debbie Rogers); and Snukas January 18, 1983 arrest for beating Argentino. After being informed of her ex-husbands murder charges, she told The Daily Beast, I have nothing further to offer.. His widow, Carol, claims that he died of CTE, not cancer. Bronstad would add that Argentino complained of neck, head, back and hand injuries. Per a separate statement from Deputy Lawrence Witter, those were diagnosed as a bruised right thumb, contusion to the neck, possible fractured ribs and injury to the lower back., Snuka, in his ghostwritten memoir, brazenly claimed, We were drinking and having a good time when all of a sudden, the police burst into our room. He added, I dont know why they chose my room maybe mine was the first one they passed but they did. In point of fact, they were there because of a call from Thomas Donovan, the motels night manager. I love the smell of the ladies. "Unfortunately, the death of Nancy Argentino is inextricably entwined in the life story of Superfly Jimmy Snuka, making the celebration of his life and career so much more difficult. For the part of the retired members of the Onondaga County Sheriffs Department, Romanenko died last year, and Bronstad, who wasnt at the hospital, doesnt remember hearing about McMahon involving himself. To mark the occasion, Irvin Muchnick, in association with the woman's surviving sisters, is publishing the ebook JUSTICE DENIED: The Death of Nancy Argentino in Jimmy "Superfly" Snuka's Motel Room. All in all, there were at least a few entities that failed Nancy Argentino in 1983: The motel clerk who let things escalate in January by not calling the police earlier; the majority of the media coverage of her initial beating at Snukas hands, which minimized her suffering to present a somehow breezier narrative of a wrestler fighting off police dogs; and the district attorneys office who, in spite of having multiple strong witnesses confirming the abuse even after Argentino recanted, basically waved Snukas actions aside to avoid risk to his green card. I could not understand why the district attorney could not see it., 30 years later, the case was still unsolved, but an opportunity for the case to be re-opened presented itself. He goes on about how he wished it hadnt happen and says I had no reason to hurt her. Nonetheless, Snuka remained forever tied to 23-year-old Argentinos untimely death on May 10, 1983. Take Dr. Isidore Mihalakiss autopsy report noting that the multiplicity and magnitude of Nancy Argentinos dozen or more craniocerbral blows may even be suggestive of mate abuse and that this case should be investigated as a homicide until proven otherwise.. All of these defenses were given in Snukas autobiography, various interviews, and other sources such as what Snuka supposedly told the nurses in the ER and what they reportedly overheard him say. "Superfly" Jimmy Snuka had an explosive career even after the death of Nancy Argentino in 1983 until his past caught up with him 30 years later. . I dont know if he gave Nancys family money or anything., Procanyns single line about McMahon while recounting the interview about the New York investigation, though, is the first time evidence of McMahons presence in the New York case has been offered in the public domain. referring to a $500,000 wrongful death suit nancy's family won in 1985. https://prowrestlingstories.com/pro-wrestling-stories/life-death-chris-benoit/, All of these wrestlers in the WWE have head trauma, they cant avoid it, its part of their job, Hamilton stated. She was staying in a motel room with Jimmy Snuka in Whitehall Township, Pennsylvania. She had a headache but no blood. We slept together each time, but we also hung out., But while he admits his marriage to his wife, Sharon, was terrible and that he was unfaithful, he seems to misremember how he put a brutal beating on her months after Argentino died. Instead, her mother received the phone call that no mother wants to receive. Jimmy "Superfly" Snuka wrestles in a match on September 4, 1995 in New Hampshire. This whole time Jimmy Snuka had claimed innocence and wrote in his autobiography, "Many terrible things have been written about me hurting Nancy and being responsible for her death, but they are not true. After being pressed about the moment of impact Snuka told the cops he asked Argentino if she was okay and she was lucid. He believed that there was enough to take it to a grand jury as a murder case, but William Platt thought otherwise. [Photo: Patriotpost.us]As told to The Daily Beast, Muchnick, while researching the incident, says that Detective Procanyn never told him that they didnt have enough evidence to indict Snuka. On that night Snuka claims he was just drinking a lot of booze. He later noted he had been smoking some pot too. When we got to the hotel right away I had to call because she wasnt feeling good, he said. In 1985, they won a $500K, wrongful death lawsuit against Snuka but he contended he was broke and never paid it, the, report obtained by Morning Call journalists at that time showed that the medical examiner wrote that they believe that the case should be investigated as a homicide until proven otherwise, the. December 2nd, 2016: Snukas defense attorney says hes in a Florida hospice, and doctors have determined that he only has six months to live. According to, the Sheriffs Department file for the case. It was obvious. Ive never heard of anything like it before.. Complicating matters is Snukas alien file, obtained from U.S. Sign up forOxygen Insiderfor all the best true crime content. The WWE issued a statement after Snukas autobiography was published and the story about McMahon showing up with a briefcase to solve the Snuka situation when it happened in 1983, "The insinuation that a group of medical examiners, detectives, and prosecutors including two who became judges could have their integrity compromised and participate in an improper activity during the course of a meeting is absurd, categorically false and insulting to all parties. Jimmy "Superfly" Snuka found Nancy Argentino gasping for air inside a motel room here in May 1983. According to the Sheriffs Department file for the case, which I obtained via the Argentino familys wrongful death lawsuit against Snuka, at least two officers on the scene witnessed Snuka resuming his attack on Argentino that same night. Citizenship and Immigration Services in 2017 after his death, which actually contradicts those reports. The Lehigh County jury will . Months later, on May 10, 1983, Argentino and Snuka traveled to Allentown, Pennsylvania to tape an episode of championship wrestling. The male was forcing the female back towards room #1 while the female was yelling for help., After seeing this, Donovan finally called the Sheriffs Department. . And yet the pro wrestler was never charged. It is a sobering tale filled with possible cover-ups and the needless death of a young woman. Bronstad, describing a shorter, older man wearing a hat, remembers being pissed off and quoting the manager a figure of $25,000 for Snukas bail, which would actually turn out to be just $5,000. Investigating the mysterious story of Jimmy Snuka, whose girlfriend Nancy Argentino died in their motel room in 1983, and revealing her family's 30-year struggle for justice. (According to a letter in the Onondaga County file, he left the sentence up to Justice Herman Harding.). Its possible like Snuka concedes that Argentino was fine with the philandering. After all, in his 1980s prime Jimmy Superfly Snuka was a masterful wrestling specimen tipping the scales in mass popularity and forcing all comers to instantly tap out. From the autobiography Superfly: The Jimmy Snuka Story by Jon Chattman: "At the funeral, I told her mother and father how sorry I was about her death. It also questions thecontroversial meeting between McMahon and authorities back in 1983, saying perhapsArgentino's death wasn't investigated properly because Snuka was an asset to the company. But according to newly uncovered police records, Vince McMahon himself may have played a larger role in the events that led to Argentinos later death. big money for everything he had planned. He can be contacted by e-mail at jojst1@gmail.com. The coconut was supposed to be shaved thin on one end, to crack like an egg, the psychologist explained, but Piper hit Snuka with the wrong end. They do not want a public apology and would not be a part of it, replied Lieutenant Paul Zemenz, the officers supervisor, in a letter sent back to Sparkes. Thats to say nothing of any potential reputational harm to the organization. In addition, Mihalikis absolutely, find, bruises, lacerations or other indications of a beating or prior injuries. Over two dozen, to be more specific, to the point that the report states that they could suggest mate abuse., But the revelation that if we take Procanyns contemporaneous interview with Bronstad and Romanenko at face value Vince McMahon may have been one of these failures is something that, in 2020, casts her death in a different light. However, by the next day, he apparently changed his story and claimed that. Current contact information for Platt couldnt be located, while the Lehigh County District Attorneys Office didnt respond to an email about the discovery, beyond saying that they were forwarding it to current DA Jim Martin. These changing stories and the official manner of death werent known publicly until 2013, when the Allentown Morning Call discovered the autopsy report and a Snuka police interview transcript both previously unavailable due to the case still being open in court records from the Argentino familys later wrongful death lawsuit against Superfly. That, and other provable incidents of domestic abuse described to the grand jury, led to an eventual indictment on murder charges, which were dismissed due to Snukas apparent mental incompetence mere days before his 2017 death from stomach cancer. The WWE has also furloughed manyworkers amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Adding to the controversy was that Snuka was married to another woman whom he had children with at the time of his relationship with Argentino. Thats to say nothing of any potential reputational harm to the organization. Senior Deputy District Attorney Craig Sheetz pointed to medical records showing that Snuka had an appointment with a concussion specialist on January 29, 2014. It was 4 a.m and I was already up. Jimmy "Superfly" Snuka leaves Lehigh County Court through the back garage after a hearing relating to the 1983 murder of his girlfriend in a Whitehall Township motel. Menu. Even though he suffered from serious head trauma from his wrestling career and was perhaps suffering from dementia, he was still competent enough to hang himself after the murders. There was enough to take it before a grand jury in 1983. Per Donovans statement in the Onondaga County file, the guests in the adjacent room called the front desk because their neighbors were raising hell and a male was beating up a female in there., He called the room to no answer, walked over and heard the man inside say, Im sorry I hit you. Being a 61-year-old man in 1983, he then left and thought the problem was over. But after he heard some yelling, he looked outside to see Argentino wrapped in a bed sheet, saw her return to the room, heard more screaming and then looked outside his office again. As the episode showed, Snukas drug use had escalated so much by 1983 that his 22-year-old mistress, Argentino, also became his pseudo-manager as nobody else wanted to deal with his alleged reckless behavior. Check out never-before-seen content, free digital evidence kits, and much more! Alistair McGeorge. The investigators had help. He writes, At one point, I went with Vince McMahon Jr. to either a court or a law office, I dont remember which because I was still in shock. His wife maintains that her husbanddid not kill Argentino. It was attended by WWE CEO Vince McMahon, the Allentown Morning Call reported in 2013. When Argentino was killed, the WWF had been bringing its TV tapings to Allentown which borders Whitehall every three weeks for several years, making the company key to the local economy. And Tarzan likely never took steroids, boozed or binged on cocaine like The Superfly admitted he had. Though the records check from the Sheriffs Office matched the four known charges, the Certificate of Conviction from the court says he pled guilty to Assault 3rd while being sentenced to his one-year conditional discharge. For 30 years, Snuka continued with his life as if nothing had happened. Chattman said that while the criminal charges left a blemish on Snukas legacy, he does not think they should define it. The autopsy report told cops to consider Nancy Argentinos death a homicide. There is no record of what was talked about during the meeting. They beat me with their batons I never laid my hands on anyone, and I didnt see any naked women, aside from the one in my room., Snuka copped a guilty plea just to get it over with and adds, I did not assault Nancyshe was fine. All was swept under the wrestling mat in fact. On top of being, according to his then on-screen manager/real-life babysitter Buddy Rogers, Snuka was big money, and with McMahon in the process of plotting a national expansion for his regional promotion their initial trip to California was several weeks away McMahon. Shawn Michaels And Diesel Good Friends, Better Enemies, Monday Night SmackDown! I would never hurt any of them.. Perhaps in an effort to rewrite history, Snuka attempts to once again clear his name in his book about how the fatal bump on the head happened. In. And of course, as noted earlier, Mihalikis ruled the death a homicide, not an accident. All Ill say is I think his legacy is intact. , was failed by an editor who gave it the headline, Judging by Bare Facts It Was Quite a Match. Worse, it was accompanied by a cartoon mocking the ordeal. By using this site, you agree to the legal terms set out in ourDisclaimer, Terms of Service, Privacy Policy, and Disclosure. In the wake of Argentinos death, one of Snukas confidants came to his aid. The District Attorneys office is arguably a different story. I think we stopped drinking after thatshe did at least, according to Snuka. I didnt see it happen, but I remember she told me she was jumping over a little stream that was there and she slipped.. The Death of Nancy Argentino (Podcast Episode 2019) photos, including production stills, premiere photos and other event photos, publicity photos, behind-the-scenes, and more. The hospital received a call for an ambulance from Snuka when he came back to the motel. At the time of Argentinos death, the leaping phenom was a married man with kids and claimed to have girlfriends everywhere. Yes, that Vince McMahon, then Snukas promoter as the owner of Titan Sports d/b/a the World Wrestling Federation, and now the chairman, CEO and owner of the WWFs successor, World Wrestling Entertainment. AEW and WWE Conspiracy: Are They Working Together? [Photo Courtesy of The Daily Beast]Nancy Argentino was just 23 when she died in 1983 after being rushed to a hospital with a serious head injury. In his autobiography, Superfly The Jimmy Snuka Story, written by Jon Chattman, he says that after coming back from the TV tapings, he was surprised to find her still sleeping, and thats when he called for help. Jimmy Snuka and the Death of Nancy Argentino: Directed by Jason Eisener. (It would not be the first time that outrageous rumors have swirled aboutwrestling mogul McMahon.). I dont know if he gave Nancys family money or anything. How a Volcano Forced Big Changes, Jim Johnston The Man Behind Legendary WWE Theme Songs, Bruno Sammartino and Vince McMahons Venomous 25-Year Feud, Marty Jannetty His Turbulent Life After The Rockers, Bret Hart and Tom Magee: Finding Wrestlings Holy Grail, Wrestler Nanjo Singh and His Wifes Brutal Murder. In 1985, Nancy Argentinos family won a $500,000 judgment against the Superfly in a federal wrongful-death civil lawsuit; but after filing for bankruptcy the retired wrestler reportedly failed to fork over any restitution. Feel free to discuss this on the Pro Wrestling Stories Facebook and Twitter pages. They are not against the donation, only that it shouldnt be tied in with the case or the Department.. WWE ECW Relaunch | Where Did It All Go Wrong? Its been an exceptionally busymonth for McMahon and his company. Frank M. Dattilio was a forensic psychologist hired by the defense. I moved to the other side of the doorway and saw a woman on the bed against the north wall of the room lying down crying and huddled in a fetal position, added Bronstad, in his own affidavit. It adds, Given the uncertainty of the situation, the Company also identified headcount reductions and made the decision to furlough a portion of its workforce effective immediately.. Eyes blood shot. Cynthia Porter, an officer in training, recalled in her affidavit that she could hear Argentino repeatedly cry No, no, dont do that! from outside the room right before Sergeant Peter Bronstad showed up as backup. Cushing spent weeks in Allentown, Pennsylvania, visiting scenes, studying the case records, and interviewing witnesses. There is nothing in the historical record to suggest that the autopsy report had never been committed to paper before the May 1984 visit with Platt. Snuka, a married man, had returned from a World Wrestling Federation taping at the Allentown Fairgrounds to find Argentino gasping for air and oozing yellow fluid from her mouth and nose.". You have to think about this and get out of this relationship., But it was too late. It wasn't long before she caught the eyes of the wrestlers. I dont like confrontation.. At one point Argentino hopped over a stream before she lost her footing. The variety of stories (were not claiming theyre true or false) about what he did with Nancy Argentino or how she got injured could fill this whole page. Reporters from The Morning Call revealed the unreported autopsy findings and put heat under the case again in 2013 to ring in the 30th anniversary of the unsolved mystery. Nancy Argentino's surviving sisters had lobbied authorities to reopen the case into her 1983 death in Lehigh County. Ronald Hamilton, a doctor of pathology at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center who helped discover CTE, said other factors such as drinking, drug use, and depression could also cause mood changes. Bronstad does remember, though, that someone claiming to be Snukas manager showed up to post bail, going on and on about how he needed to be able to wrestle the next night. 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