John Wheeler case: Cab driver comes forward, claims contacted police first

Examiner com ^ | January 23, 2011 | Radell Smith

[brityank]

John Wheeler case: Cab driver comes forward, claims contacted police first

* Radell Smith
* January 23rd, 2011 6:05 am ET

John P. Wheeler III's murder investigation has been going on since his body was found on New Year's Eve of 2011, but it wasn't until this week that a cab driver named Roland Spence of Seacoast Cabs came forward publicly to say he was the one who gave Wheeler a lift from the Amtrak station that fateful week the ex-Pentagon official died.

According to USA Today, Roland Spence contacted the different police agencies involved in the John Wheeler homicide investigation, each referring him on to the next, until he was directed to Newark PD.

Spence said that he spoke with an officer at Newark's Police Department, but he didn't give the officer's name. According to USA Today, Spence claims the officer asked him for details about when he allegedly picked up John Wheeler--and what Wheeler looked like, ...

[brityank]

Johns lawyer is Bayard Marin Law ...

Thanks; that still makes me wonder what he was doing at the 10th floor law offices. Is it possible they are the lawyers for Mitre? DE is one of the biggest corporate registry states as it's a very corp-friendly court/law system.

Also, I found that the Wilmington Small Business Administration is also in the Nemours Building:

Delaware District Office
1007 N. Orange Street Suite 1120
Wilmington, DE 19801

[Hot Tabasco]

I believe the cabbie has a notebook to track his fares by date and time

I doubt it, cab drivers lease their cabs from the cab companies and all the fares collected on a shift belong to them......I know two cabbies and one recently quit his job because he wasn't getting enough fares per night to cover the cost of the cab and gasoline which is their responsibility too. So in actuality, some nights he was actually losing money.

Now here where I live, the local cab companies have dispatchers to contact the drivers and inform them of a pick up from a residence.......unfortunately for the guy I mentioned above, his dispatcher was demanding kickbacks from the drivers to guarantee they would get a call.

[brityank]

Thanks for the map.
Your 'A' drop is the Nemours Building - to the right is the Hotel DuPont and to its left is the DuPont building. I used to drive in off I95, Delaware Ave. East to 11th Street over to Market Street. The buildings pretty well fill the blocks.

[brityank]

Could be different rules in different areas.
I had a friend who drove cab in the 80’s; the company owned the cab and the medallion hack license and he was an employee, got 40% of the fares plus tips - company paid for expenses and gas. Had to fill trip sheets for every shift.

[Hot Tabasco]

Could be different rules in different areas.

I suspect you're right.....

In my area, cabs aren't a primary source of transportation like many cities in the east where cabs cruise their routes picking up their fares. Cabbies here respond to phone calls into their cab company and then the dispatcher notifies the first available driver in that particular neighborhood........That's probably why here the drivers lease the cabs for their shift so as to guarantee an income on the vehicle for the cab company.

[Albion Wilde]

.

For those not already pinged; here's your ping to a new Wheeler thread from brityank discussing discrepancies between the stories of two cabbies.

FReepmail Albion Wilde to be ADDED or REMOVED from a pinglist on the Wheeler case. If you received this ping, you're ALREADY ON.

[LucyT]

ping to a new Wheeler thread from brityank discussing discrepancies between the stories of two cabbies.

Thanks, Albion Wilde.

[Sherman Logan]

Unless the cab company are idiots they have gps tracking of their cabs so they can determine whether cabbies are transporting fares and pocketing the money.

[PLD]

Get a good Physic involved in the case..The police I am sure is doing the best job they can with the little evidence they have so bring in the Physics..

[ml/nj]

USA Today reports that Spence said John Wheeler asked to be taken to the Hotel du Pont, so he followed his usual Walnut Street route, resulting in a short ride of less than a mile.

Wheeler's conversation during the transit from AMTRAK to Hotel du Pont, according to Spence, consisted mainly of stating Hotel du Pont wasn't worth the money it cost to stay there, which resulted in Spence assuming Wheeler might be going to visit someone or eat there instead.

Actually, shouldn't the question be: Did Wheeler stay at the Hotel du Pont that night or ever? And/Or: Did Wheeler have any charges at the Hotel du Pont that night or ever?

ML/NJ

[Cicero]

I have not followed this story closely. But I would add a couple of points, speculative at least.

I understand that the family building the house across the road, with an Italian name, ran a garbage collection company, I think in Newark.

Now, I haven’t been in the metropolitan area in some time, but the private carting companies in NYC and nearby New Jersey were run by the Mafia for many years. And the Mafia had many connections with the politicians in the NY/NJ area.

Dumping a body in the trash is an old Mafia custom.

If this were the case, then certainly the police in Newark would be closely connected with the crooked politicians and the Mafia, all scratching each others’ backs. Newark has always been a corrupt place—and probably those other Jersey towns as well.

As I said, this is speculative. But if the Mafia is involved, then the police, the DAs, the politicians, and everyone else is going to be covering for them.

Interesting that this nearly coincides with Eric Holder’s huge raid on the Mafia in that area. Probably a coincidence, but I should think maybe Holder’s raid might shake up politics as usual in the area.

[al baby]

Look for a dead cabby in the days to follow

[brityank]

This is not New Jersey.

Waste Management has pretty well consolidated the trash hauling/collection business across the North East.

I agree the Mafia is likely involved, but not overtly.

[cricket]

Thanks for ping. Have to say this story 'very defensive' of police while making taxi driver seem unreasonable by his failure to disclose in 'better fashion' and by his not contacting media.

Think the answers here not so mysterious as is made to be, however. Appears the driver, once aware of his pick-up; and less aware or confused by 'time-line' as we all have been somewhere in this story - did go to police and with more referrals to go elsewhere (if true) and eventually shard his info/story. Why would he want to go public - to Media - given that this is a homicide of 'high order' and make himself a link of any kind.

Now his name has been outed and he wants to defend/clear himself as nothing more than a 'driver' who gave Wheeler a ride and nothing more.

That makes more sense to me, than the dramatic colorations and embellishments added, per this story.

[PGalt]

Thanks for the ping. Thanks to all posters. BUMP for John Wheeler.

[Dr. Scarpetta]

USA Today reports that Spence said John Wheeler asked to be taken to the Hotel du Pont, so he followed his usual Walnut Street route, resulting in a short ride of less than a mile.

Wheeler's conversation during the transit from AMTRAK to Hotel du Pont, according to Spence, consisted mainly of stating Hotel du Pont wasn't worth the money it cost to stay there, which resulted in Spence assuming Wheeler might be going to visit someone or eat there instead.

But that is a jump in logic an investigator should not make, as Wheeler's alleged comment about the hotel not being worth what it cost could simply have meant just that: he was staying there but felt it was overpriced.

The question then becomes: why stay in an over-priced hotel in Wilmington when your home is mere minutes away?

Did John Wheeler get to Wilmington on the 29th, instead of the 28th??

[WestCoastGal]

I wish we wouldn’t post new threads - it’s so confusing, there’s stuff all over. :(

I will add the link to the other one though :) Thanks for ping.

[Albion Wilde]

I wish we wouldn’t post new threads - it’s so confusing, there’s stuff all over. :(
I will add the link to the other one though :)

That's a very good suggestion, WestCoastGal. I will carry that forward -- pings to new articles will be linked on the "master" thread. Thanks for the FReepmail, LucyT. Do you think we are double-pinging some people? Let's get organized.

[BykrBayb]

What’s the name of the security company that supplied the surveillance video? I recall reading the name of the company somewhere and that they supply surveillance cameras for several businesses in the area. I’m looking into a certain angle. If it pans out, I’ll share what I find. If not, well, it was worth a shot. But I need to know the name of the security company.

[LucyT]

Do you think we are double-pinging some people? Let's get organized.

Probably we are double-pinging, how do we fix the problem?