MN MN - Geno Ranelli, 26, 20 May 1977

Geno Ranelli
Missing since May 20, 1977 from Minnesota
Classification: Missing

Vital Statistics
Date Of Birth: January 22, 1951
Age at Time of Disappearance: 26 years old
Distinguishing Characteristics: White male. Dark hair.

Circumstances of Disappearance

Ranelli is believed to have last been in Minnesota with his friend Christopher Freeman, who is also missing.


Ranelli's family last heard from him on May 17, 1977. According to family members, the men may have been on their way to Pennsylvania.


Geno has been declared legally deceased.


Investigators

If you have any information concerning this case, please contact:
Anita Moyer, Minnesota Area Director



Source Information:
The Doe Network: Case File 3593DMMN

Chris Harold Freeman Missing since May 8, 1977 from Minnesota

Chris Harold Freeman
Missing since May 8, 1977 from Minnesota.
Classification: Missing

Vital Statistics

Date Of Birth: March 26, 1957
Age at Time of Disappearance: 20 years old
Height and Weight at Time of Disappearance: 6'0"; 170 lbs.
Distinguishing Characteristics: White male. Blonde hair; blue eyes.
Fingerprints: Available
Dentals: Not available
DNA: Available

Circumstances of Disappearance

In June 1975, Chris, originally from Hastings, MN, and a friend moved to Arizona and worked while waiting to enter Bell and Howell School. Before he started school, Chris met Geno Ranelli.

Chris changed his mind about school and returned to Minnesota with Geno to start a business. They set up a shop in East St. Paul, MN. The shop sold various products made of Redwood. They closed the shop in 1977.

During this time, his family did not know where Chris lived. His parents think he may have lived in St. Paul, MN or Red Wing, MN. He would occasionally call or show up for family events.

On May 8, 1977, Chris made a phone call to his parents, to wish his mother a Happy Mother's Day and let her know that he would not make that day's family celebration. That was the last contact his family had with him. As they did not know Chris's address or phone number, it took a while to realize that he was missing.

According to Geno's sister, Chris and Geno left for Philadelphia on May 20, 1977. There was also information that they may have ultimately been headed for Miami. Chris and Geno have not been heard from since.

While Chris' case is being investigated by law enforcement, there is no missing persons report on file for Geno.

Chris had left some of his possessions in storage. The items included a car, some collectible coins and items from the redwood shop.

There has been many rumors and speculation what happened to Chris, that he left voluntarily, that he was a victim of foul play, also including some possible sightings in Phoenix and Minneapolis. Nothing has however been confirmed.

Investigators

If you have any information concerning this case, please contact:

Hastings Police Department
Lt. Jim Rgnonti
651-480-2300

Agency Case Number: 2004006169

NCIC Number: Not Entered

Please refer to this number when contacting any agency with information regarding this case.

Source:

The Doe Network: Case File 754DMMN

LINK:

http://www.doenetwork.org/cases/754dmmn.html

MN - Christopher Harold Freeman, 20, 1977 - Websleuths Crime Sleuthing Community

MN MN - Christopher Harold Freeman, 20, 1977 - Websleuths Crime Sleuthing Community

Geno Samuel Ranelli

Details of Disappearance

Ranelli was last heard from by his family on May 17,1977, and he was last seen on May 20. He was in St.Paul, Minnesota at the time. He has never been heard from again. He may have traveled to Pennsylvania after his disappearance. One of Ranelli's friends, Christopher Freeman, disappeared a few weeks before Ranelli did. It is not clear whether the disappearances are connected. Both cases remain unsolved. Ranelli has been declared legally dead.



Ranelli's tattoo

Were Geno and Chris a couple, I wonder? It seems odd that Chris' family didn't know where he was living for a period of time, even though he was still showing up for family events now and then. That makes me wonder if maybe he didn't want them to know that he was living with another man in a "more than roommates" situation. I wonder about this only because it might give a little more direction about places to search or possible sources of information (clubs, etc.).

I'm not entirely understanding the sequence of this, though:

In June 1975, Chris, originally from Hastings, MN, and a friend moved to Arizona and worked while waiting to enter Bell and Howell School. Before he started school, Chris met Geno Ranelli.

Chris changed his mind about school and returned to Minnesota with Geno to start a business. They set up a shop in East St. Paul, MN. The shop sold various products made of Redwood. They closed the shop in 1977.

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I originally read that as "Chris and friend, Geno Ranelli, moved from MN to AZ." But on a second read-through, is it saying that "Chris and person X from MN to AZ...and then Chris met Geno, and the two of them moved to MN?" If so, who was person X? Did he/she just stay in Arizona? And where is Geno originally from, then? Was he an AZ native?

Also, I found this blog that looks to be by Geno's sister; it seems to focus a lot on family geneology. About halfway down the linked page, it says this next to a photo:

My brother, Geno Ranelli, is in the plaid shorts. My father, Mario, took this 2 1/4" square negative. Geno's twin, Mario, was also there. Geno has been missing since May 20, 1977 & Mario died of carbon monoxide poisoning December 12, 1971.

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http://donnagregory.blogspot.com/2006_02_02_archive.html

I wonder if Geno was depressed over his twin's death, and that played into his disappearance somehow?

The sister's blog says that she lives in MN, and mentions of Minnesota are all over blog, so I'm even more confused about when and where Chris and Geno met?

OK, it looks like Geno was definitely from Minnesota. The sister's blog has info listed in the family tree:

2. Mario John Ranelli II, Johnson HS 1969, graphic artist St. Paul Technical College 1970
b. January 22, 1951 St. Paul, MN
d. December 12, 1971 buried at Fort Snelling National Military Cemetery (carbon monoxide)
3. Geno Samuel Ranelli, Johnson HS 1969
b. January 22, 1951 St. Paul, MN
d. missing since May 20, 1977, declared legally dead, enlisted US Navy 1969-1971 Eye, Ears, Nose and Throat Specialist, St. Albans Naval Hospital, New York, NY

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I'm not entirely sure about what "Eye, Ears, Nose and Throat Specialist" at St. Albans means...Geno was 26 when he was last seen, and the age of 18-26 is not enough time to serve in the Navy, and go to medical school, and do a specialist residency, and have time to set up a wood products shop with a friend, and throw in a couple of possible moves from AZ to MN and back again. Besides, if he was a doctor, you'd think that would have been mentioned at some point, or that someone would have tried to trace him through state licensing or something. I don't do genealogy, though, so maybe listing the "eyes ears specialist" stuff is some kind of genealogy convention that I'm not aware of. Or maybe that's some kind of Navy medic designation that he trained for while he was in the service?

ETA: Well, never mind about the "Eye, Ears, Nose" stuff; I just didn't read deep enough into the sister's blog:

Our doctor was par excellance, too. His specialty seemed to be EENT, Eyes, Ears Nose & Throat. That was Geno's assignment at St. Albans' Naval Hospital in Long Island, from May, 1969 to 1971. He wanted to become a physician's associate. So much for dreams.

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So, that explains that.

Maybe someone wants to contact the sister at the e-mail address listed on her blog, and invite her over/see if she can offer any more information? I'm not good at that kind of stuff and it might seem weird since I'm mostly a lurker without a high post count, but maybe someone who has contacted family members before might want to give it a go?

Bumping this case up. Both Geno's thread and that of his friend Christopher Freeman mention a possible trip to Philadelphia in early 1977.

Does anyone know when Geno served in the US Navy, and what his rating (job specialty) was?

Mouse said:

Maybe someone wants to contact the sister at the e-mail address listed on her blog, and invite her over/see if she can offer any more information? I'm not good at that kind of stuff and it might seem weird since I'm mostly a lurker without a high post count, but maybe someone who has contacted family members before might want to give it a go?

Click to expand...

I contacted his sister from her blog. Hopefully she still has the same email address. I invited her to check out this forum.

I heard back from his sister, but she didn't say much. She may be leery about providing details to strangers. She just said that her email is still active basically.

Bumping.

Bumping for Geno...it's now been 43 years.

You shouldn't think so badly, although two men alone there may be some kind of rapprochement... perhaps they were ambushed or wanted to disappear in order to live their relationship... whatever rest in peace