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Over the weekend The Allentown Morning-Call in Pennsylvania and The Cherry Hill Courier Post in New Jersey featured pieces noting the 30th anniversary of the death of Jimmy Snuka's girlfriend Nancy Argentino.
Argentino's 1983 death remains an open case in Allentown, PA, although there has been no movement on it in decades. Her family was not aware that the case was still considered open, according to one of the reports.
Renewed interest in the case was brought about by both the anniversary and Snuka openly stating his side of Argentino's passing for the first time in his autobiography, which was published several months ago.
According to Snuka's account, Argentino (described as his road girlfriend on the East Coast; Snuka was married at the time to his second wife) was driving him to a TV taping in Allentown when she stopped to relieve herself on the side of the road. Snuka has claimed she slipped while returning to the car and hit her head on the side of the road. They continued on to their hotel, where she complained of a headache and he left her sleeping when he left for the taping. When he returned, he realized she was having trouble breathing and called for the police. Argentino passed away hours later from complications of a head injury.
Argentino's family claims of Snuka's behavior before her passing, an scary incident involving the couple in Upstate New York where several police officers with canine dogs had to be called to quell and arrest Snuka as well as changes in Snuka's statements about the circumstances of Argentino's passing over the years leave at the very least, a major question mark over the hows and whys of what happened.
No matter what account you believe, the sad reality is that the circumstances of Argentino's death will never, ever be full revealed, especially after the passage of so many decades. That is a terrible tragedy no one should ever hope on anyone or their family.
Argentino's family still places the blame on Snuka. At the time. the medical examiner suspected foul play because of numerous marks on Argentino's body. In his report, he wrote, "I believe that the case should be investigated as a homicide until proven otherwise."
As it turned out, Snuka was questioned (Vince McMahon was present for the questioning according to the reports) but never indicted for the crime. Snuka attended Argentino's wake but did not return for her funeral.
Argentino's family claimed that the then-WWF offered them $25,000 to keep quiet over the circumstances of her death shortly after it happened, which the family turned down. A WWE spokesperson declined to comment on the story.
Argentino's family did gain a $500,000 wrongful death judgment against Snuka, but never collected a penny. Snuka claimed at the time he could not afford a legal defense and was in heavy financial trouble.
In each article, Snuka's current wife Carole stated that he did not want to discuss the case and referred the reporters to his book, stating that was his only comment on the situation. Quotes from the book are used to present his side of the story.
To read the Morning Call piece, click here.
To read the Cherry Hill Courier Post story, click here.
Argentino's sisters have co-authored an E-book about her passing and relationship with Snuka, with proceeds going to a Westchester, NY women's shelter. For more on the book, click here.
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