Cold case unit sees conviction in 1971 Bedford murder, IDs suspect in 1989 Framingham rapes
FRAMINGHAM - For a 1971 cold case, it was "good, old-fashioned detective work" that led to a guilty verdict for Arthur Massei in the killing of Natalie Scheublin in Bedford. In the case of the 1989 rape of two women in Framingham, DNA led to a suspect and an arrest warrant.
"We don't forget when somebody comes into this county and commits a crime," said Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan.
The 1971 murder of Natalie Scheublin
Scheublin was a 54-year-old Bedford wife and mother of two. She was found dead in the basement of her Bedford home. She was stabbed, tied down and beaten to death on June 10, 1971.
Scheublin's husband was head of a bank at the time. Prosecutors believe that the now-78-year-old Massei, of Salem, who was convicted on Tuesday, was after the keys to the bank.
Ryan said investigators found an accomplice who was willing to talk. "It was really taking apart Mr. Massei's life and looking at every aspect of it. ... Who back in 1971 was he in contact with?"
The rape of two women in 1989
That same Middlesex County cold case unit now says they have a suspect in a 34-year-old rape that happened at a Framingham clothing store.
Police said they used genetic genealogy, which uses DNA to determine how closely two people are related, to name 71-year-old Stephen Paul Gale as the suspect in the 1989 cold case.
"First and foremost," said Framingham Police Chief Lester Baker, "I'd like to acknowledge the victims for their bravery. Without their ongoing help and courage, we would never have been able to finally have a break in this horrific crime. It's been a long time coming -over thirty years now - and I am grateful to now have the opportunity to finally tell them - and their loved ones - that all of their efforts have not been in vain. This crime has haunted the Framingham community for decades, but none of us ever gave up hope or forgot about them."
Gale is accused of entering Hit or Miss on Route 9 in Framingham on December 27, 1989, while two women - ages 18 and 29 - were just opening the store. According to District Attorney Marian Ryan, Gale said he was there to buy clothes and asked for help before pulling a gun on one of the employees. He allegedly forced the two women to the back of the store demanding that one of the women take the money from the store safe and cash registers, as well as her own purse, and put it into a bag. He then allegedly ordered the other woman to lock the store doors and put up a sign saying the store would open late.
Ryan said Gale then forced the women to take off their clothes before locking them in separate rooms and assaulted each of them while holding a gun to their heads. The women eventually escaped through a fire door at the rear of the store and ran to get help, but the suspect was never caught.
Now, decades later, police say DNA samples taken from Gale's family linked him to the crime.
"It is those things that have happened over time and applying them to the evidence that we have that bring us to this point where we were able to identify and indict Mr. Gale. We know that for people waiting, it is an agonizing period of time. In this case, it's been 34 years. You think about the lives that have been lived by the two women affected by this incident," Ryan said.
The U.S. Marshals Service is offering up to a $5,000 reward for information leading to Gale's arrest.
Middlesex DA Cold Case Unit
Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan launched the Cold Case Unit in 2019. The unit investigates unsolved homicides, suspicious deaths where foul play in suspected and missing persons cases.