A retired Chicago Police Bomb Squad explosives technician, minister and Vietnam War veteran was shot and killed Thursday.
Larry Neuman, the longest-serving explosives technician for the Chicago Police Department (CPD), “was killed in shooting in the 4300 Block of W. Monroe at approximately 11:32 a.m. on June 20, 2024,” the CPD posted Friday on Twitter.
The 73-year-old retired-officer-turned-minister was found with multiple gunshot wounds and was transported to Stroger Hospital where he passed away, the Chicago Sun Times reported. (RELATED: Off-Duty Police Officer Robbed At Gunpoint)
— Chicago Police (@Chicago_Police) June 21, 2024
As we work to bring his killers to justice, we are seeking community assistance. @cpdmemorial is offering a $25,000 reward for information leading to an arrest and conviction. If you have information, submit an anonymous tip at https://t.co/smDNzhI4H0. Anonymous tips can also be… https://t.co/5SDv8hAKna
— Chicago Police (@Chicago_Police) June 21, 2024
“He spent his entire career safeguarding our city and spent his retirement as a reverend, speaking out against the violent crime that’s plaguing our neighborhoods,” CPD Superintendent Larry Snelling said. “Please keep his family in your thoughts.”
After 28 years of service, Neuman retired from the Chicago police department in 2010 and then joined the Transportation Security Administration (TSA). Neuman trained the screening workforce at the O’Hare and Midway airports in Chicago on how to identify explosives and other possible threats, a TSA spokesperson told the outlet.
Neuman was a member of St. Michael Missionary Baptist Church for over 30 years and Pastor Paul Sims said Neuman was a “pillar” of his community, the Chicago Sun Times reported.
“He was the kindest man you knew. There wasn’t anything that Larry Neuman wouldn’t do for somebody. If you needed it and if he didn’t have it, he would go get it for you,” Sims told the outlet.
Neuman was an ordained minister on the ministerial staff at St. Michael Missionary Baptist Church who enjoyed helping young people with his advice.
“He would stop and talk to any and everybody. He would encourage you no matter what you were doing in life, no matter what it was he would stop and talk to somebody,” Sims told the Chicago Sun Times.
In addition to his other roles, Neuman was a veteran of the Marine Corps. He served in the Vietnam War, according to Sims.
“He was a great man, he was a great person,” Sims said.
