Roger Milton Wheeler Sr. was an American businessman, the former chairman of Telex Corp. and former owner of World Jai Alai. In 1981, he was murdered at age 55 in his car.
Early life
Roger Milton Wheeler was born in Boston, Massachusetts to Sidney Sea Wheeler and Florence Edith Wheeler on February 27, 1926. He served in the United States Navy from June 28, 1943 until July 1, 1946.
Death
On May 27, 1981, he was murdered in his car while preparing to leave Southern Hills Country Club in Tulsa, Oklahoma, following his weekly game of golf. He was purportedly murdered for uncovering an embezzlement scheme that was going on at his business, World Jai Alai. After retiring from the FBI, H. Paul Rico took a job as head of security for World Jai Alai. He saw the perfect opportunity to set up his former confidential informants Whitey Bulger and Steve Flemmi in a skimming operation there. The Winter Hill Gang was thought to have skimmed $10,000 per week from the parking lot operation at World Jai Alai, but this was never proven. Upon discovering the thefts, Wheeler investigated; this created major problems for Bulger's group, and led to five or six murders, two of which remain unsolved. When a Bulger underling expressed relief that the emergency was finally over, Bulger replied: "No, it's not over… Roger Wheeler was a multi-millionaire… and he was connected. So dig in… because it's gonna go on for as long as it has to." On March 14, 2001, three members of the Winter Hill Gang — Bulger, Flemmi and Johnny Martorano — were indicted for Wheeler's murder; two other alleged co-conspirators were already dead. In a plea bargain, Martorano confessed to some 20 murders by the gang, including Wheeler's. He was given a 15-year sentence, but was released in 2007 after serving only six years. Flemmi also pleaded guilty to the murder of Wheeler and others and is serving a life sentence. Bulger became a fugitive and was on the FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list from August 19, 1999, until his capture on June 22, 2011. In 2003, Rico, the former head of security for World Jai Alai and an associate of Bulger's, was also indicted for Wheeler's murder. He pleaded not guilty and died of natural causes while in custody awaiting his trial.
Wheeler's case was covered in the first-ever episode of long-running investigative show Unsolved Mysteries in January 1987. In the Whitey Bulger biopic Black Mass, Wheeler is portrayed by David De Beck.
