These supporting players included: (1) Mike Gillich, Jr., owner and operator of the Golden Nugget, a night club and strip joint in Biloxi, Mississippi; (2) John Ransom, a parolee from a Georgia prison; (3) LaRa Sharpe, Nix's girlfriend and a paralegal; (4) Peter Halat, mayor of Biloxi and . Still, the seamy events that led to the slayings of the judge and his wife were astounding, even to law-enforcement officials. Reward offered. Biloxi's Tale of Murder, Extortion and Racy Photos, https://www.nytimes.com/1991/12/29/us/biloxi-s-tale-of-murder-extortion-and-racy-photos.html. And we do it knowing that the tragic deaths of our friends, Vince and Margaret Sherry, remains unfairly clouded.". Mike Gillich, the alleged "underworld boss" of Biloxi, Mississippi, aided Nix in his various schemes. My brother & my daddy were murdered by a member of the Dixie Mafia. "Peter Halat knew somebody was going to die, and better Sherry than him," Mr. Fabian said. Has anyone ever investigated a connection between Mr. Nix and Mr. Sherry before Mississippi. Why would you say that? One of his first steps was to interview an inmate at the Louisiana State Penitentiary in Angola who had been linked to the Dixie Mafia, Bobby Joe Fabian. Gillich, Ransom and Nix are charged with interstate commerce, murder for hire, conspiracy, wire fraud and aiding and abetting. Slabbed ISSN 2572-1437 is the copyrighted property of Slabbed New Media, LLC 2007-2021. Mr. Fabian said that when members demanded an explanation from Mayor Halat, he told them the money had been taken by his law partner at the time, Mr. Sherry, who became a judge shortly afterward, in July 1986. Laura Corso, I see your post is recent and I would love to talk with you concerning Frank Corsos death. Mr. Nix, the authorities say, has maintained tight control over the mob's operations in Louisiana and Mississippi despite spending two decades in prison for killing a grocer. Sharpe, 36, who once worked in Sherrys law office, pleaded guilty last year to theft in connection with the scam. Buy Now. Found this on another site. The rapid transformation of the old seedy Biloxi strip into a glitzy casino filled section of beachfront known locally as casino rowfueledthe legalized gambling movement just to the west in Louisiana. I certainly remember this SCANDAL from when I was younger, but I certainly didnt understand it all then, and I am having a tough time understanding it now. See Photos. ), cert. Mr. Gillich was charged with conspiring to sell marijuana and faces trial on that charge March 9. Those were in fact the kinds of clients on which the Halat & Sherry law firm had seemed to thrive. Mrs. Sherry was shot four times in the head by the same .22-caliber pistol, authorities said. Halat held the inmates scam proceeds in a trust account. I ever open till like a month ago. In 1991, Gillich was convicted for his role in plotting the 1987 Sherry murders and was sentenced to 20 years in prison. Gillich and the inmate, Kirksey McCord Nix Jr., were convicted in the federal case in 1991. Yes he was friends with all the gamblers on the Gulf Coast and it cost him and my little brother their life. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Advance Local. Persistent rumors of homosexuality. Im not going to stop fighting for justice for my dad and brother and I hope you will not. Michael Sharp, Chicago Title Agent who prepared and closed the Longwood Circle Iranian/Porn Sheikhs Closing in Tehran. That one was closed out and another opened. My dad protected me from all the court dates and drama as best as he could to protect me. Yes my dad was involved, no Im not proud, yes it got my little brother murdered (case closed as suicide) due to corruption in Sheriffs Dept.. Father murdered in 2003 after I started asking questions Does anyone have pictures of ones mentioned or can identify some of them.. Isnt it interesting that an easily accessible bank box right there in Biloxi would be overlooked by the authorities as something that might have contained scam money but was not inventoried: The one that only Pete had signed into! Sheri LaRa Sharpe - convicted, INMATE INFORMATION PETER HALAT Register Number: 20918-077 Age: 75 Race: White Sex: Male Released On: 04/24/2013 INMATE INFORMATION Name: KIRKSEY MCCORD NIX Register Number: 20921-077 Age: 79 Race: White Sex: Male Release Date: LIFE Located At: FCI El Reno INMATE INFORMATION MIKE GILLICH Register Number: 02624-043 I do not want to bring up old memories of hurt but I feel I have the proof after all of these years as to who murdered Judge Sherry and Margarett- They also murdered my dad on April 18, 2003 because he was getting old and starting to expose them. A glimpse of activities in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Amid the chaotic speakership debate in the House, a star is born, Iconic activist Ineva May-Pittmans death in a house fire rips the hearts of many The shocking news flood the airways and social media, Amid GOP division in Congress, Biden and McConnell bask in rare bipartisanship victory in Kentucky, Ex-Biloxi mayor still denies role in killings, A Byte Out of History: Murder and the Dixie Mafia. United States of America, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. Sheri Lara Sharpe; Thomas Leslie Holcomb; Peter Halat, Jr.; and Kirksey McCord Nix, Jr., also known as J R, also known as Junior, also known as Kirk, Defendants-Appellants. The Sun Herald reports that Halat, 70, was released from federal prison in Oakdale, La., and moved to a halfway house. Reward being offered for any positive information leading to the arrest in these two unsolved murders. We have a lot of catching up to do. Experience the ultimate LED video display on the market! I have pictures of my father with several of Mafia members playing cards at his kitchen months before my brother was murdered.. The indictments dont deal with the death of Sherrys wife, former Biloxi Council member Margaret Sherry. He appears frail and often dozes during testimony. The Sherrys were shot to death on Sept. 14, 1987, in their North Biloxi home. Thats when a state prison inmate, Bobby Joe Fabian, testified before a federal grand jury that he and fellow inmates bilked homosexuals by advertising for pen pals in gay magazines. While it was not my intent to inflict emotional pain on the family of the victim I stand by my assessment. Margaret had served on the city council and unsuccessfully opposed Mayor Gerald Blessey in 1985. Consequences also could have flowed from fooling around with Gillets strippers, and those consequences could have come from a number of directions. The homeowner was found dead of multiple gunshot wounds early Tuesday morning. Sherri Sharpe. [1] In 1986, Margaret sued Blessey over a campaign ad which stated, Margaret Sherry and her husband profit from representing vice. The ad was critical of Vincent Sherrys legal representation of businesses regulated by the citys anti-vice ordinance. Gillich, John Ransom, Nix and Nix's girlfriend, Sheri LaRa Sharpe, were convicted in 1991 on a federal conspiracy charge. To preserve these articles as they originally appeared, The Times does not alter, edit or update them. Indeed it stated that you even hugged Gillich. This I know with complete accuracy because with the help of Dauby Scheile at Jefferson, I located the second box. These were some bad people. My father found it easier to pay the small fee to keep the boxes than close them out as he had hopes of one day retiring to KY. Gillich said he and Nix arranged the murders because of missing profits from a prison scam run by Nix. Like I said, the results of those associations had tragic consequences for the Sherrys, whose daughter later told Judge Pickering she forgave Gillich for his role in the murders. Margaret Sherry - 1987. wife of Vincent Sherry; Russell Raymond Ervin - 1990. Halat and Vincent Sherry had been law partners, starting in 1981. Harvey had been spotted committing the most serious of sins gambling at another companys casino. But after Mr. Armistead's visit, Mr. Fabian not only talked with the authorities, he also sought out a television reporter who interviewed him in prison. The echos of this Dixie Mafia inspired hit still reverberate across the Mississippi Gulf Coast and New Orleans to this day. Sheri Lara Sharpe Marcus Wright speaks, Timeless counsel from our revered Dr. Rev. The 1980s were also a period of transition on the coast and no place symbolizes that transition more than the City of Biloxi as the illegal gambling and the flesh trades gave way to legalized gambling. I know my dad knew his as I have heard his name mentioned before. Those events resulted in the 1991 convictions of Nix and Sheri LaRa Sharpe for fraud, conspiracy to commit murder-for-hire, and related offenses. I am very sorry for your loss and admire your tenacity in seeking the full truth regarding their murders. My mother graduated high school in Japan. 303-717-4951. Registration on or use of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement, Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement, and Your California Privacy Rights (User Agreement updated 1/1/21. Halat had accused Vincent Sherry of taking the money and also offered to pay half of $20,000 of the hit man costs, Gillich testified. Vince also enjoyed the local wildlife he found in that underground culture and that has in turned caused speculation Mrs Sherry had very practical reasons to take on the strip clubs when she was on the Biloxi City Council. Dunne said that Halat declined to be interviewed for the Court TV show. ", See the article in its original context from. Gillich died in April. There is only one way I know someone with the caseload of Mr. Sherry can get to be a Judge. So the idea he needed large sums of under the table money would not true. Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Business News. Based on the new information, Federal authorities pursued the case that led to the indictment of Mr. Nix and three others. The stranger who fired the fatal shots disappeared into the night. Bradford O'Keefe Funeral Homes in Biloxi [] Advertisements Kirksey McCord Nix Jr. is serving life without parole in a federal prison in Florence, Colo. Nix was convicted of masterminding the conspiracy from a Louisiana prison cell, where he was serving a life sentence for a New Orleans murder. http://www.murderedinmississippi.com. I think I figured that one out after my last post. Looking for Lara Sharpe? Mr. Armistead has never said publicly what he did to get the 46-year-old Mr. Fabian to talk about the crime and the detective did not return several telephone messages seeking comment. Former U.S. Attorney George Phillips, whose office first prosecuted the case, is also featured. Sherry was appointed a circuit judge in 1986. . See Photos. Dixie Mafiosos of yore needed lawyers too and after a life of crime that culminated in the hit on Italian Mobster Frank Corso, whose descendants ran money laundering rackets along the coast based out of Bay St Louis, Kirksey Nix Jrs life of crime seemingly came to an end. There was lots of cross pollination between the two. [], This month marks the 25th anniversary of the murder of Judge Vincent Sherry and his wife, Margaret, whose deaths at the hands of the so-called Dixie Mafia exposed the lawlessness and corruption that had overtaken Mississippis Gulf Coast in the 1980s. Federal prosecutors dropped those charges and Gillich was the chief prosecution witness when Sherrys former law partner, former Biloxi Mayor Pete Halat, and three others were convicted in 1997. After serving nine years of his sentence, Gillich was released in July of 2000. Neither the federal government or the state government or any court in this land will be able to prove the premise upon which the prosecution is based in Hattiesburg, Halat has said. Keep up to date with the latest news, forecasts, & weather alerts with WJTV. The men who responded to these ads were wooed and asked to wire money to one of Nixs associates. They do say that the inquiry into who killed the Sherrys is continuing. Gillich turned government witness after being caught in taped telephone conversations urging his girlfriend, Frances Salisbury, to pay a trial witness to change his testimony. Not a day behind bars. BILOXI- (AP) Mike Gillich Jr., a former Biloxi striptease lounge owner who helped plot the 1987 Dixie Mafia murders of a judge and the judge's wife, has died. AND DO YOU KNOW PHYLLIS COOK? The nickname comes from Biloxi's long history of illicit gambling. Fabian, who had congestive heart failure and other health problems, died in June of 2012 in the Mississippi State Penitentiary in Parchman. UGH. This is a digitized version of an article from The Timess print archive, before the start of online publication in 1996. I am also 17th great granddaughter of St. Thomas Moore. Vincent was a Circuit Court judge and Margaret was a city councilwoman with dreams of becoming mayor one day. Please consult an expert before taking any action. And, the intermediary for most of this; the sweet voice that often answered the phone and handled the transaction details, was none other than Nix's now-grown-up adolescent worshipper from Fort Smith, Ark., Sheri LaRa Sharpe. Mike Gillich Jr., a former owner of striptease lounges in Biloxi who became a government witness, was released from prison in July 2000 after serving nine years for his role in the conspiracy. I do appreciate you getting back to me. The plan was to store the cash in the safety deposit box until it was time to buy Nix out of his legal troubles, but Halat became greedy and stole $100,000 from the box. Gillich was reportedly known and trusted by almost all members of the Dixie Mafia, earning the trust of those who trusted no one else. Following the 1991 trial, new facts came to light implicating petitioner and Thomas Holcomb in those matters. a Louisiana prison inmate who was the alleged mastermind of the scam, and Sheri LaRa Sharpe, who once worked in Halat's law office and allegedly assisted in the scam. Registration on or use of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement, Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement, and Your California Privacy Rights (User Agreement updated 1/1/21. All rights reserved (About Us). Sherri Sharpe. Shes on parole. The health department has a heck of time keeping disease numbers down on this subgroup. 35.00 / 65.00. Nos. The FBI . Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Fabian testified that Nix ordered the Sherry slayings because Halat had convinced Nix that Vincent Sherry had stolen some of Nix's proceeds the scam. Sherry Sharpe . But when he turned up with the second installment, Caesars declared the deal was off and he would have to cough up pronto or face prosecution. Gillich was convicted in 1991 of conspiring to kill Circuit Court Judge Vincent Sherry and his wife, former Biloxi councilwoman Margaret Sherry. in late 1960s my grandfather was stationed in Japan. Interesting since they sent BPD and HCSO to Kentucky to witness my opening of two bank boxes my father had there since he had recently been in KY. One he had jointly with his mother who lived there and one was jointly with an aunt who never had children. According to court testimony, Halat knew about the murder plot against the Sherrys and failed to notify law enforcement. http://www.murderedinmississippi.com. Halat and. JACKSON An inmate who linked prison telephone scams in Louisiana to the murders of a Mississippi judge and his wife has died at a Mississippi prison. Mayor Halat has vehemently denied any link to the scheme or the slayings, and called Mr. Fabian's story 'an outright lie.". Once relationships developed through the mail and by telephone, they were asked to send money. I had on Sherrys murders I have been ignored ever since. Connect with the definitive source for global and local news. Former Biloxi striptease lounge owner Mike Gillich was the chief prosecution witness when Halat and three others were convicted in 1997. . Biloxi Confidential focuses on Pete Halat, who took office as Biloxi mayor in 1989, less than two years after the murders. Biloxi is now home to legal casino resort hotels, with 24-hour gambling, concert entertainment shows and restaurants. Allain did not run for reelection in 1987., WOW it just so happens a well known cruising spot for gay men is right by his old crib. All of the same great people, writers and editors but now with more firepower. I have never heard of him. (AP) _ Vincent Sherry and his wife were shot in cold blood after prisoners heard the state judge skimmed money from a scheme in which inmates bilked their homosexual pen pals, federal prosecutors say. It seems to me that the focal question should be: WHO STOLE NIXS $100,000? Nix reportedly cashed in on hundreds of thousands of dollars from this scam, all from behind bars. 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