Boeing whistleblower found dead in SC days after testimony. Here’s what we know
A retired Boeing employee was found dead in Charleston Monday, days after his testimony against the aviation company.
John Barnett, 62, of Louisiana, was found dead shortly after 10:20 a.m. of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound, according to a Tuesday Charleston Police Department press release. Barnett was found inside a vehicle outside a Holiday Inn at 301 Savannah Highway.
Barnett, a former quality manager at Boeing who had retired after 32 years, died just days into testifying in a whistleblower retaliation lawsuit, where he alleged that workers, under pressure, were deliberately firing substandard parts to aircraft on the company’s assembly line, according to the Daily Mail.
Barnett had testified that sometimes second-rate parts were removed from scrap bins and then fitted to planes to prevent building delays. A 2017 from the FAA upheld some of Barnett’s testimony, the Daily Mail wrote.
The CPD press release states that detectives were actively investigating the case and were awaiting the formal cause of death.
“We understand the global attention this case has garnered, and it is our priority to ensure that the investigation is not influenced by speculation but is led by facts and evidence,” the press release states. “Public disclosure will follow the investigation’s conclusion.”
