For Arthur Kasherman, the warning of impending danger came from a knife plunged into the tire of his car. Regardless, he decided to take the risk, suspecting the imminent threat. The 44-year-old was situated outside Hannah’s Cafe at the junction of 15th Street and Chicago Avenue South in Minneapolis, having just treated a friend, Pearl Von Wald, 34, to a late evening meal. As the clock was nearing midnight on a cold Monday, January 22, 1945, little did he anticipate the gruesome events about to unfold.
Meanwhile, the backdrop to this episode was characterized by an ongoing war scenario, with the U.S. military battling the German Nazis and the Japanese in the Pacific region. Back on the streets of Minneapolis, Kasherman was grappling with his inoperable vehicle, the slashed tire proving its worth. Just as his frustration was peaking, an ominous squealing of tires filled the air, followed by the daunting sight of a dark sedan making a sharp turn toward him from the snowy intersection.
Alarmed by the sudden appearance of the ominous vehicle, Kasherman watched as a man alighted, brandishing a .38-caliber revolver. A gunshot echoed, followed by the rapid disintegration of Kasherman’s window glass. Springing from his vehicle, he attempted a stumbling run down the snow-capped pavement, frantically pleading for mercy.
Yet, his desperate pleas fell on deaf ears. The assailant pursued him, coldly raising his weapon. A final round. Kasherman’s figure crumbled to the ground as bullets tore through his back and skull. His lifeless form laid sprawled at the intersection, the white snow turning scarlet. Von Wald, the friend accompanying him, was unscathed and held at gunpoint as the predator fled the scene, tracing back the dark route.
First responders arrived at the gruesome scene to find remnants of the attack – an automobile with a shattered window, scattered shell casings of a .38 revolver, and Kasherman’s lifeless figure. It bore all the hallmarks of a meticulously planned homicide. In the glow of the early morning light, they draped his body with a white sheet, while onlookers started to gather around.
Onlookers watched as the scene unfolded, with photographs snapped and investigative procedures initiated. However, digging through the layers of Kasherman’s life unfolded complexities. The peculiarities associated with his life and work hinted that solving his murder would not be a straightforward task.
Kasherman, a local born in Russia and raised in North Minneapolis, had a distinctive history. During his law school years, he was embroiled in a city hall corruption case, choosing jail over ratting out a source. Over the years, he pioneered niche publications featuring sensational and often scantily substantiated reports of the city’s corruption.
Yet, Kasherman himself did not maintain an impeccable reputation, reportedly involved in extortion through threats of exposing individuals’ darker secrets. His bold tactics ostracized him, causing most print houses to refuse his publications, and mainstream newspaper houses to shun him, regardless of the truthfulness of his articles.
His nefarious activities stretched beyond the bounds of his journalism career. In 1937, he served a prison sentence at Stillwater State Prison for an extortion attempt against a brothel madam. Yet, incarceration didn’t deter his ever-fiery spirit; he was back at work shortly after his release, accusing the city mayor of running the city’s most corrupt administration yet.
Despite his contentious antics, Kasherman’s death created ripples in Minneapolis and across the state, making the front-page news. He became the third journalist to be killed in the Twin Cities over an eleven-year span. In his humble boarding house room, police discovered 10,000 unsold newspapers filled with his latest expose.
The bullet fragments and shell casings were dispatched to the FBI for further analysis. The concluding report indicated that two different guns were involved in the incident, hinting at a potential second shooter. Despite this possible lead, the case seemed to stagnate over the next few months.
The unsolved murder fueled the campaign of a local politician who rode on the promise of cleansing the city’s corruption. Kasherman’s untimely death stressed the dire need for new leadership and indirectly catalyzed the politician’s landslide victory. Kasherman’s lasting legacy, however, remained as convoluted as his life.
Thus, Arthur Kasherman, largely an enigmatic figure, found his final resting place in Richfield, Minnesota, mostly forgotten barring a few lasting memories. His unsolved murder continues to echo in unsolved crime archives, a chilling testament to his tumultuous life.