Police Investigate Fatal Shooting of Norwood Musician and Former IRS Agent John W. Harris-October 20, 1975

Tragic Discovery on Berwick Street-October 20, 1975

Local and state police detectives continued a rigorous investigation into the shooting death of John W. Harris, 54, of 31 Walnut Ave., whose body was discovered inside his automobile near 14 Berwick St. shortly before 10 p.m. on Saturday.

Harris, a former Internal Revenue Service (IRS) agent who had most recently been working for the Daily Transcript in Dedham following his dismissal from the agency, was found shot twice in the head. According to medical examiner Dr. Joseph A. King of Needham, Harris died of gunshot wounds and was pronounced dead upon arrival at Norwood Hospital shortly after 10 p.m., with the time of death estimated between 7:45 and 9:45 p.m.

The grim discovery was made by his wife, Florence, and two of his sons, John Jr., 18, and Matthew, 15. Harris had left his home at approximately 7:50 p.m. dressed in gray pants, a red sport coat, and a tan overcoat, intending to play drums with his band at the Norwood Elks Lodge just a quarter-mile away. Police confirmed he never arrived at the lodge.

When he failed to show up for the 8:30 performance, a concerned band member called the Harris home, prompting family members to launch a search that led them to his vehicle. Harris was found face down in the back seat on the driver’s side of the car. Investigators—led by Detective Robert J. Lawrie, Detective Sergeant William Travers, and State Police Detective Lieutenant John Butler—recovered a .38 caliber bullet from the victim’s head and launched a statewide search for the .38 caliber handgun used in the crime.

Missing Gear Recovered and Probing Background-October 20, 1975

Approximately 30 minutes after the vehicle was located, Walpole Police recovered the victim’s drums and cymbals alongside the road near 255 Union St. Detective Lawrie noted that the musical equipment appeared to have been carefully placed on the ground rather than thrown from a moving vehicle, as the gear was entirely intact and undamaged.

While authorities refused to rule out robbery as a motive, investigators began examining Harris’s professional background as part of the homicide inquiry. Earlier that year, Harris had been named as an unindicted co-conspirator in the federal tax evasion trial of convicted Boston bookie Francis A. Vitello, who was convicted of laundering $810,000 through a Swiss bank account scheme. Because Harris still had money on his person when his body was found, detectives heavily weighed his past federal associations.

Harris is survived by his widow, Florence, and their eight children. Funeral arrangements were handled by the Gillooly Funeral Home in Norwood.

Archival Note: This article has been dynamically reconstructed from the original public record print archives of the Patriot Ledger