William Asher Richardson Jr.

Status:

Open

Jurisdiction:

Corpus Christi Police Department (TX)

Offense Location:

Corpus Christi, Texas

Summary:

William "Bill" Asher Richardson Jr. was shot in the driveway of his home at 4966 Oakmont Drive at about 11pm by two men. The killers shot Bill with four loads of No. 4 buckshot from sawed-off shotguns before fleeing in a getaway car. Bill's 11-year old stepson James LaBarba and his housekeeper Mary Chavez witnessed the shooting and later testified at the trial of Odis Hammond, who was acquitted in 1972. Sam Mena was also arrested but had charges dropped. Both were suspected to be hired shooters.

Vital Statistics

Circumstances of Offense:

Richardson was suspected to be involved in high-stakes gambling and was a prominent competitive live pigeon shooter. He was also formerly an oilman, having declared bankruptcy two years before his death with debts totaling more than $2M. 125 unsecured creditors were listed on his bankruptcy documents. Police investigated the bankruptcy as a potential motive, as well as tensions within his social circles over gambling. Richardson was friends and associates with Bruce Lusk Bass III, a man convicted for killing another member of their social circle, Randy Farenthold. Farenthold was found murdered on June 6, 1972. Bass was convicted for his murder in 1977. During grand jury testimony before his indictment, an associate of Bass' claimed that Bass also took part in Richardson's murder. The grand jury testimony, which remains sealed, alleged that Bass was furious with Richardson because he thought Richardson was pushing him out of a high stakes gambling operation the two participated in. Part of the statement including a claim that Bass' associate disposed of a shotgun used in the murder for him, throwing part of it in Oso Creek near Corpus Christi and in a storm drain. Police searched Oso Creek but found conditions too poor for an effective search, and no evidence was found to corroborate the grand jury allegation. Bass served six years for Farenthold's murder before he was shot to death in 1984 in Corpus Christi in a case ruled to be self defense. Members of Richardson's social circle had suspected ties to organized crime, according to FBI documents released to Bellingcat under FOIA requests and declassified FBI records posted online. Jerry LaBarba, Richardson's friend and the ex-husband of his wife, and Tharel Smith, Bruce Bass' alleged accomplice in the Farenthold murder, were alleged to be working as "money men" for Dallas nightclub owner Tony Caterine, who was investigated by the FBI for racketeering and links to Carlos Marcello of the New Orleans Crime Family. Bruce Bass and Jerry LaBarba were also investigated by the FBI as part of an investigation into interstate gambling in 1966, and may have been arrested with gambling paraphernalia and loaded handguns by Portland, TX police in December 1967.

Additional Details:

The case is covered extensively by Bellingcat and The Texas Observer (linked under Related Stories).

Case Last Updated:

May 28, 2025