‘Unsolved Mysteries’ Entertains 2 Theories About the Death of Jack Wheeler
Volume 2 of the first season of Netflix’s Unsolved Mysteries reboot opens with the case of John “Jack” Wheeler, a Washington insider whose body was discovered in a Delaware landfill on January 2, 2011.
The case confounded investigators for a number of reasons, including Wheeler’s sporadic movements in the days leading up to his death, as well as a two seemingly peripheral events: a case of arson near Wheeler’s home and a break-in at his home shortly thereafter.
What we know for certain is the cause of Wheeler’s death. Investigators interviewed in the Netflix docuseries agree that the death was likely a homicide. The injuries Wheeler sustained simply could not have been the result of his being harmed by a trash truck. Netflix revealed images of Wheeler’s autopsy which lists several injuries, including a punctured lung, broken ribs, and bleeding in the head. The cause of death was “blunt force trauma.”
Given the cause of death, there are a couple theories one might entertain as to how and why Wheeler was killed.
Wheeler was mugged (or died as the result of a random act of violence)
Several interviewees in the series reject this theory. Wheeler’s body still had both his Rolex and his West Point ring. He even had money in his wallet.
Part of this theory also maintains Wheeler had put himself in a dangerous situation because of his bipolar disorder. The reason he had wandered into Wilmington, investigators and journalists suggest in the series, was that Wheeler was having an episode. This, they say, may also explain the break-in at his home: it could have been Wheeler. Wheeler was having disagreements with a neighborhood construction project. The arson that occurred at the site, one person in the documentary suggests, could have been committed by Wheeler. (His cellphone was later found at this site.) When Wheeler arrived home, he might have realized his cellphone was missing and began breaking things. This reconstruction of events, however, seems far too speculative, given the lack of evidence. We may just never know the connection between the arson event and the break-in (if there is a connection).
If not a mugging, then perhaps Wheeler was the victim of a random and brutal act of violence. The documentary doesn’t say when Wheeler died or where the crime scene exists. One garbage truck driver interviewed suggested that the opening of the trash dumpster was close enough to the ground to crawl in. It’s also easy enough to put someone else in. It’s unclear—through the Netflix docuseries—if Wheeler was beat and then climbed into the dumpster to hide, later dying of his wounds, or if he was killed and then put in there. If it was the latter, it may suggest a more exacting murder.
Wheeler’s killing was targeted
Wheeler’s wife, Katherine Klyce, told Slate it was the fact Wheeler’s body ended up in the dumpster that suggested someone didn’t want him to be found. ““The way they disposed of his body, it’s a miracle anybody ever found it," she said. "That just sounds like a pro to me.”
Throughout the days leading up to Wheeler’s death, investigators note Wheeler’s on-camera behavior—in a pharmacy, in the basement of an office building, and in a parking garage. The footage, one noted, suggested a degree of paranoia, as if Wheeler was hiding from someone.
These observations comprise one theory that Wheeler was targeted and assassinated.
Wheeler also worked with top level Pentagon officials and served in previous presidential administrations. He was something of an authority on chemical and biological weapons. At the time of his death, he was also working in cyber security. The Washington Post noted a few years ago that one possible theory was that Wheeler was about to become a whistleblower—exposing the U.S. dumbing of chemical weapons—and that his own government played a role in the killing.
Again, none of these theories can really be confirmed given the current array of evidence. Perhaps Netflix reintroducing the public to the case will stir up some leads.
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