John Barnett, Boeing whistleblower who raised production concerns, died by suicide: Police

Charleston: A former Boeing employee, who raised concerns over production standards of the aircraft manufacturing company and was found dead after several days of depositions in South Carolina, was found to have died by suicide, police said on Friday after concluding their investigation into his death. “Information and records reviewed during the investigation uncovered Mr Barnett's longstanding mental health challenges, which had intensified in connection with ongoing legal proceedings related to his whistleblower case,” police said in a statement. Barnett's death comes as Boeing and its supplier face intense scrutiny over production standards following an incident in January, where an unused emergency exit door of a Boeing 737 Max blew off mid-air after taking off from Portland International Airport. Post-retirement life and death After retiring in 2017 due to health reasons, Barnett became part of a long-running legal action against the airline giant, accusing it of denigrating his character and hampering his career because of the issues he pointed out - all claims were later denied by Boeing.