Scharff Murder Case Closed

When Mob man Frank Cullotta turned government witness in the early 80′s, he had to open his life up to the Feds.  To be a part of the Government Witness Protection and save his own neck, he had to come clean on everything he ever did, everything in detail.  One forgotten fact or a missed date meant he would be out on his own and open to those who wanted him dead.

One of the things he disclosed was the fact that another Vegas Mobster,  Larry Neumann, was most likely responsible for the unsolved double homicide of barkeeper Ronald Scharff and his waitress Patricia Freeman in  McHenry County, Illinois.  He gave great detail into why he thought this.

But McHenry County is 40 miles from Chicago, Mob central and who knows who was on the take.  But the Sheriff’s office never really went looking for Larry.  They talked to him, but that was about it.  Larry Neumann would later die of natural causes while in prison on another murder charge.

Fast forward almost thirty years later.  Frank Cullotta publishes his biography and in it talks about the murders.  This gets back to Paul Scharff, youngest son of Ronald Scharff.  With Frank’s help, he gets the case reopened.

After one year of new investigation work and help from Frank and other sources, the McHenery County Sheriffs office announced earlier this month that yes, they do believe that Larry Neumann is most likely the man who killed Paul’s father and his barmaid.

However, they stopped short of a definite “Yes”, due to the age of the case, lost files and the procedures of yesteryear are no match for the way cases are handled today. That, and the fact that the lead suspect is now deceased.  It’s as far as they can go. The Case is Closed.

So at least there is some closure for the families.  Not the way they would like it to be.  Yet it is more than they could have ever imagined had Frank Cullotta never published his life story.

Chicago News – Case Closed