Cop Killed Through His Kitchen Window

[plmkr88]

i am trying to remember the name and case of the cop who was shot and killed through his kitchen window. a suspect to my knowledge was never found or arrested. anyone know which case i'm talkin about?

[Charli-Ann]

i am trying to remember the name and case of the cop who was shot and killed through his kitchen window. a suspect to my knowledge was never found or arrested. anyone know which case i'm talkin about?

I think this was the case of Ralph Probst. He and his wife were watching the Oscars on TV when he went into the kitchen and was shot through the window. I believe he was from Chicago or the Chicago area.

Charli-Ann

[plmkr88]

I think this was the case of Ralph Probst. He and his wife were watching the Oscars on TV when he went into the kitchen and was shot through the window. I believe he was from Chicago or the Chicago area.

Charli-Ann

yes, i think thats it.

[MegtheEgg86]

I think this was the case of Ralph Probst. He and his wife were watching the Oscars on TV when he went into the kitchen and was shot through the window. I believe he was from Chicago or the Chicago area.

Charli-Ann

Yep, he was. He was employed by the Cook County Sheriff's Department--and a very, very good cop by all accounts. Terrible event, and very sad that it hasn't been solved.

[Guardian]

I just reviewed this case after seeing the post. Hadn't seen it in years. I think he was working on something and got too close. I think the mob boss mentioned in the segment was likely involved, but that almost seems like a no brainer. However, I can't believe that the hospital incident would be enough to set the mob boss off so badly as to have a police officer killed. My guess is that after that, Ralph either started looking more closely at the boss, or stumbled across something that invloved him and began investigating and was killed for getting too close.

Of course I could be wrong, but just that small incident in the hospital seems fairly minor and not something you would up and decide to put out a hit on someone.Who knows though. People have been killed for a lot less.

[Guardian]

PS - wasn't there another very similar case where a cop was shot through his kitchen window? I seem to remember a more remote location and they police found evidence that someone had stood at a certain point outside the home before shooting. I don't recall too many details other than that, other than it was a pretty wooded area outside the house.

[MegtheEgg86]

Ralph Probst is, by the way, my ultimate "UM crush". A very handsome, hard-nosed cop dedicated to his job...I even like those Buddy Holly glasses.

[Corky Kneivel]

I even like those Buddy Holly glasses.


Of course you do, Meggy Sue...

[Corky Kneivel]

The mob boss profiled, “Mad” Sam DeStafano, was by virtually all accounts a pure psychopath. Him and his crew were responsible for numerous gangland murders, some of them incredibly grisly and for the most specious of reasons, around Chicago through the late 50’s-early 70’s.

His protégée, Anthony “Tony the Ant” Spilotro (portrayed as “Nicky Santoro” by Joe Pesci in the film Casino) went on to become a prolific killer and jewel thief. He is associated with some of the most notorious Chicago gangland murders and eventually murdered Mad Sam, with the assistance of Mad Sam’s brother Mario, in his driveway while they were all out on bail and awaiting trial together for the murder of a loan shark whom they tortured to death in Mad Sam’s garage. They felt Sam was too much of a loose cannon and couldn’t be reasonable and would have cooked all their gooses at trial. So they clipped him with a shotgun. A mistrial was declared and they all walked. Nice guys.

I recommend former FBI agent William F. Roehmer’s books about the mob in Chicago during this time. He’s an old school FBI guy and they practically created the Top Hoodlum/Organized Crime department of Hoover’s FBI. They are:
Roemer: Man Against the Mob
The Enforcer: Spilotro, The Chicago Mob’s Man Over Las Vegas
Accardo: The Genuine Godfather

Other Chicago hitmen who might have been brazen enough to kill an unarmed cop in his home:
Chuckie Nicoletti
Felix “Milwaukee Phil” Alderisio
Frank Cullatta (there are some great blogtalkradio podcast interviews with him)
Albert Tocco

[XCalibur]

I have always sensed it was a professional hitman who killed Probst. The murder was one of the most cleverly executed I've ever heard of. They said Probst was reaching for the phone when he was shot, I have always wondered if the person calling wasn't involved in the murder, to get him standing in that spot at that time. It was a fiendishly smart crime.

To much time has passed I doubt it will ever be solved. I wouldn't be surprised if there are former cop friends of Probst who have a good idea who was involved. But probably don't have enough evidence to make any sort of arrest.

Oh well, That was over forty years ago. If the guy isn't dead justice isn't far off you gotta look at it that way.