After surrendering to the police on Tuesday following third-degree murder and involuntary manslaughter charges in the 1983 death of his then-girlfriend, Nancy Argentino, whether or not ‘Superfly’ Jimmy Snuka will be able to face those charges 32 years later is now in question.
Though it was initially reported that he was arrested, Snuka arrived at the Lehigh County Courthouse with his family, in a wheelchair and hooked to a feeding tube.
“He is not in good shape physically or mentally,” said Snuka’s attorney, William E. Moore of Lansdale. “I’m not sure he realized what was going on. I’m not sure what his cognitive abilities are.”
Moore says while he will not be representing Snuka at trial due to previous commitments, whoever takes over the case will need to assess Snuka’s competency. Snuka’s current condition post-stomach cancer surgery has left the former wrestler in need of daily assisted care. Moore also says that years of in-ring work and concussions have left Snuka with partial dementia, and he may not be fully aware of what’s happening.
The former WWE Hall of Famer appeared to answer a grand jury subpoena earlier this year; however, he did not testify. Moore asserted Snuka’s Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination, saying that Snuka simply did not remember the events surrounding Argentino’s death.
“His faculties are so compromised you wouldn’t know what he’s saying,” Moore said. “He doesn’t understand a simple conversation. You put him up against a sharp prosecutor asking, ‘Remember 30 years ago when you said this …,’ he has no recollection.”
Part of the decision that led to the charges was determining that no less than 14 different versions of the events had come directly from Snuka, including in his 2012 autobiography. Moore says he’s only familiar with the evidence in the case pertaining to the autobiography, but finds it hard to believe that the recollections could have come from Snuka: “He said he wrote a book. That’s kind of comical.”
