Jimmy 'Superfly' Snuka, legendary WWE wrestler, dies at 73

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Monday, January 16, 2017
Jimmy 'Superfly' Snuka appears at the Spooky Empire Mayhem Horror Convention at the DoubleTree Hotel on Saturday, May 31, 2014, in Orlando, Fla.
Jimmy 'Superfly' Snuka appears at the Spooky Empire Mayhem Horror Convention at the DoubleTree Hotel on Saturday, May 31, 2014, in Orlando, Fla.
Photo by Jeff Daly/Invision/AP-AP

PHILADELPHIA -- Legendary former pro wrestler Jimmy "Superfly" Snuka has died weeks after a Pennsylvania judge dismissed a murder case against him. He was 73.



On Twitter Sunday morning, actor and former WWE star Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson wrote: "Our family @TaminaSnuka asked me to share the sad news that her dad Jimmy Snuka has just passed away. Alofa atu i le aiga atoa. #RIPSuperfly."




Snuka's daughter, Tamina, who performs with the WWE, wrote: "I love you dad." She also posted a photo of their hands on Instagram.



Earlier this month, Lehigh County Judge Kelly Banach said Snuka was not competent to stand trial in the 1983 death of his girlfriend.



Snuka's lawyer had told the court that his client was suffering from, dementia, was in hospice care in Florida and had six months to live.



The retired WWE star was charged in 2015 with third-degree murder and involuntary manslaughter in the death of Nancy Argentino, whose body had been found more than three decades earlier in their Whitehall Township hotel room.




Prosecutors alleged she was beaten, while Snuka has maintained that she died from a fall. Authorities reopened the investigation after The Morning Call newspaper raised questions about the case in 2013.



Banach ruled last summer that Snuka was not competent to stand trial after his attorney argued the ex-athlete had dementia, partly due to the head trauma sustained over a long career in the ring. Prosecutors countered that Snuka's brain showed normal signs of aging and suggested he might be feigning symptoms.



At a hearing last month to re-evaluate Snuka's mental fitness, his wife told the judge that the family struggled to keep him from leaving home during bouts of psychosis in which he thought he was late for a wrestling match. Banach then took time to review Snuka's medical records before ruling.



Snuka, a native of Fiji who previously lived in Camden County, New Jersey, was known on the wrestling circuit for diving from the ropes.

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