THE DEVIL LOOKS AFTER HIS OWN
This went on for four years. Charlie Wall’s friends continued telling him to keep quiet, or he’d soon die. He never listened, and on April 19, 1955, he was found murdered in the bedroom of his home. His head was bashed in with a blackjack and a bat, and his neck was sliced from ear to ear. On the dresser in his bedroom where he was found dead was Estes Kefauver’s book, Crime in America, which was a summary of his findings during the national crime hearings.
While the police had a few suspects, including Charlie Wall’s former drivers–Joe “Baby Joe” Diez and Johnny “Scarface” Rivera–no one was ever charged. It is believed, though, that the murderer was someone who Charlie Wall knew. There was no forced entry into the home, so Charlie Wall had to have let the killer in. There was also no sign of struggle in the house, meaning Charlie Wall trusted the killer enough to allow him into his bedroom.
It’s been nearly 6.5 decades since the murder, and it remains a mystery, but the legend of Charlie Wall has endured.
Charlie Wall used to say he survived as long as he did because the “devil looks after his own.” And, for over three decades, the devil kept a close watch on Charlie Wall, during which time he controlled the city of Tampa in a way that no individual had done before or since. But on April 19, 1955, the devil must have found someone else to look after, and the life of one of Tampa’s most colorful figures came to a dark end.
Traces of Charlie Wall’s legacy can still be found in every corner of Tampa–in the halls of the city’s municipal buildings through the names and photos of the countless city leaders he secretly helped to elect; in Ybor City’s social clubs through the games of bolita still thrown for special events; or in bookstores throughout the city in novels he inspired. But, throughout the city of Tampa, if you look closely at those places where the sunlight doesn’t shine so bright, you’ll still see traces of Charlie Wall’s shadow–the White Shadow.
Originally written for Cigar City Magazine
Paul Guzzo is a reporter for the Tampa Bay Times. He found the lost segregation-era all-black Zion Cemetery. His unique beat also includes the local film industry, Tampa history, professional wrestling, and the odd and unique people who make up this area. Guzzo has been a journalist in Tampa since 1999, including a senior writer for Cigar City Magazine and Tampa Mafia Magazine. In his younger years, he was an independent filmmaker best known for an award-winning documentary on Charlie Wall, Tampa’s first crime lord.