A former Boeing employee who claimed the company’s 787 Dreamliner manufacturing process was substandard was found dead in his truck, authorities said.

The Charleston County, South Carolina, coroner confirmed that 62-year-old John Barnett died of a “self-inflicted injury” on Saturday.

His lawyer, Brian Knowles, cast doubt on the circumstances of his death, while citing an “alleged” self-inflicted wound.

Mr Knowles said in an email corporate crime reporter His client is pursuing a whistleblower lawsuit against Boeing when he was “tragically” found dead.

Who is John Barnett?

Mr Barnett had worked for the aircraft manufacturer for 32 years until 2017 and made a series of allegations against the company in 2019.

He died on the third day of testifying in a whistleblower lawsuit against Boeing Co., where the former employee claimed the U.S. multinational retaliated against him for his accusations about the way the company operated, his lawyers said.

Boeing rejected the accusations, the BBC reported.

When he failed to show up for questioning on Saturday in Charleston, South Carolina, police called the hotel where he was staying. He was later found in the truck in the hotel parking lot, according to reports.

Mr. Barnett has worked at Boeing’s North Charleston facility since 2010, where he served as quality manager for 787 Dreamliner manufacturing.

On the same day that news of his death broke, a 787-9 aircraft flying from Sydney, Australia to Auckland, New Zealand “frozen” in mid-air due to a malfunction, injuring at least 50 passengers.

What does Mr. Barnett claim?

Boeing’s safety record has been under scrutiny since two fatal crashes involving its 737 Max in 2018 and 2019.

The company came under pressure again in January after an unused cabin door on one of its 737 aircraft was blown off at 16,000 feet.

Asked whether the 737 aircraft could be trusted after the horrific incident, Mr Barnett told TMZ: “Number one, it’s not a 737 problem, it’s a Boeing problem”.

He said the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is conducting “due diligence and inspections to ensure that the doors on the 737 are installed correctly and the fasteners are stored correctly.” But he said he was worried about the condition of the rest of the plane.

Barnett said he was concerned “the work was not being completed properly and inspection steps were being cancelled”. He told TMZ that he’s concerned that the 737 and 787 programs “really put a lot of effort into degrading the quality of the process.”

In 2019, whistleblowers told the BBC that staff deliberately installed substandard parts on the aircraft under pressure and that passengers on the 787 Dreamliner could suffer from hypoxia if the pressure was suddenly decompressed.

Mr Barnett said he feared the push to build new planes meant safety would be compromised, According to the BBC.

The company denied his claims.

“We are saddened by Mr. Barnett’s passing and our thoughts are with his family and friends,” Boeing said in a statement.

Charleston County Coroner Bobby Joe O’Neill’s office said: “The Charleston Police Department is the investigating agency. No further details are available at this time.”

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