Boeing whistleblower's lawyers call for full investigation into his mysterious death

A longtime Boeing employee who had raised safety allegations against the company was found dead in his truck on Saturday in Charleston, South Carolina, authorities said, marking a tragic turn amid his legal battle with the aerospace giant.

As previously reported on Rebel News, John Barnett, 62, was discovered with a gunshot wound to the head around 10:20 a.m. in a hotel parking lot, according to the Charleston Police Department. The coroner's office said that the wound appeared to be self-inflicted, though the official report is still pending as the circumstances remain under investigation, Fox News reported.

Barnett, a former quality control engineer who retired from Boeing in 2017 after over 30 years, had been in the midst of a deposition related to a lawsuit he filed alleging retaliation from the company. His attorneys, Robert Turkewitz and Brian Knowles, said he had completed part of the deposition on Friday and was expected to continue on Saturday, but failed to appear.

"We are all devastated," the lawyers told Fox. "We need more information about what happened to John. The Charleston police need to investigate this fully and accurately and tell the public what they find out. No detail can be left unturned."

In 2019, Barnett had gone public with claims that Boeing rushed production of its 787 Dreamliner jets, compromising safety standards. He alleged that around 25% of the planes had defective emergency oxygen systems that could suffocate passengers in the event of cabin depressurization.

Barnett said he raised these concerns with management in 2010 while working at Boeing's North Charleston plant, but was met with inaction and retaliation instead, culminating in the lawsuit.

"He was in very good spirits and really looking forward to putting this phase of his life behind him and moving on," his attorneys stated. "We didn't see any indication he would take his own life. No one can believe it."

The Federal Aviation Administration substantiated some of Barnett's allegations in a 2017 review and ordered Boeing to take corrective action.

In a statement, Boeing expressed condolences, saying, "We are saddened by Mr. Barnett's passing, and our thoughts are with his family and friends."

"John was a brave, honest man of the highest integrity," Barnett's lawyers added. "He cared dearly about his family, his friends, the Boeing company, his Boeing co-workers, and the pilots and people who flew on Boeing aircraft."