Seth Rich Parents Refute New Claims On Wikileaks Contact
![](https://images.forwardcdn.com/image/970x/center/images/cropped/seth-rich-social-1479410262.jpg)
Image by Linkedin
The parents of slain Democratic National Committee staffer Seth Rich are speaking out against yet another conspiracy theory surrounding their son’s death — even though the latest disclosure comes from an investigator they hired.
Rob Wheeler, a private investigator hired by the family, went on Fox News and [claimed(https://forward.com/fast-forward/372053/slain-democratic-staffer-seth-rich-contacted-wikileaks-before-mystery-murde/) he had evidence that Rich had been in email contact with wikileaks before he was murdered outside his DC home. This could feed into the claim made by conspiracy theorists that Rich was in some way involved in the DNC email leak and was targeted by the Democratic Party in retaliation.
The Rich family was quick to dispute Wheeler’s claims.
“We see no facts, we have seen no evidence, we have been approached with no emails and only learned about this when contacted by the press,” Brad Bauman, a spokesman for the Rich family told BuzzFeed News.
Ever since the July 10 unsolved murder, Mary and Joel Rich have been battling recurring conspiracy theories aimed at tying their son’s killing with the pre-election DNC email leak. The parents and the Washington D.C. police believe it was a robbery gone wrong.
Contact Nathan Guttman at [email protected] or on Twitter @nathanguttman
A message from our editor-in-chief Jodi Rudoren
![](https://forward.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Jodi-Headshot.jpg)
We're building on 127 years of independent journalism to help you develop deeper connections to what it means to be Jewish today.
With so much at stake for the Jewish people right now — war, rising antisemitism, a high-stakes U.S. presidential election — American Jews depend on the Forward's perspective, integrity and courage.
— Jodi Rudoren, Editor-in-Chief