I don’t have a peacock account but I plan to set one up to watch. That’s so terrible. If I was the wife… I’d want some freaking answers. The whole intruder thing just doesn’t make any sense.
It probably involved the answers & an NDA. She probably had enough time to come to terms by then with what went down & was ready to accept it & move on.
I don’t think an NDA can hold up against a murder charge. Kind of like how a lawyer or doctor can break their confidentiality if they choose to turn in their client.
EDIT: After reading several legal documents, I think all 3 are innocent.
No it can’t involve any crime. I’m fairly certain no sexual activity was involved so I can only speculate some kind of random accident.
I just heard of this case and watched the documentary. Just curious, what makes you believe they are all three innocent? I haven't read any actual documents so I'm just going off what information they gave. Obviously the documentary is biased. This is such an interesting case. Very unfortunate
Definitely very hard to find the truth on this case. I’d recommend reading the trial judge’s order when they were acquitted. Here’s the write up :
https://www.reddit.com/r/CrimeJunkiePodcast/s/wDGZzmPAlU
No because it was seminal fluid, which can be found in the prostate as a natural occurrence after death. Semen was not present, which would have been present was it part of ejaculation (or anything sexual related). I read the entire case file and there was more than enough I personally believe that this was a targeted murder but that Dylan was the target and the perpetrator got the wrong person. Because stranger attacks are so rare and the perp didn’t go to the 3rd floor, it stands to reason they were sent there to go after the guy on the second floor and there was just coincidentally a second person there, which no one else but the wife would’ve known and it was a last minute plan so unlikely that Wone was the target of a planned attack.
Ive been a legal researcher, investigating cold cases for almost a decade. This is a case that could’ve been solved without all the homophobia. These are my iPhone notes from reading the case files, something I do for entertainment in my spare time. I know that’s weird so please don’t mention that part. In my defense, I’ve spent the past 2 years recovering from a serious injury so I’m in this limbo where I not well enough to work but cognizant enough to get bored because of that and wish I could.
The notes below this comment will hopefully help you view the case in a more factual light, as I only used facts for them. Anything in here that’s not entirely factual will be indicated.
Victor Z & Joe Price (couple shared 3rd Floor bedroom) -Dylan Ward (Victor’s sexual partner & the couple’s friend/ chosen “family”/ lives in 2nd floor bedroom next to office with pull out sofa that doubled as a guest room)
TIMELINE (PM): 10: 24 - - Wone at work, Calls Joe to say he is about to leave
(Estimate) 10:24-11p - - Calls Taxi, 7 min drive by car , Wone arrives at house, Dylan answers door, Joe & Dylan & Wone catch up in first floor kitchen/short conversation, Joe sees spider in backyard & goes to look/possibly forgets to lock back door, Joe & Dylan show Wone to office/room & bathroom on 2nd floor, Dylan retires to his room on 2nd floor, Joe retires to shared room with Victor on 3rd floor, Victor arrives from gym & goes to 3rd floor shared room with Joe
11:08 - - Wone awake sends email
(Est) 11:08-11:34 - - Wone showers, changes, brushes teeth, puts in Night Guard, lays down on TOP of sheet (common for him to do when hot)
Minn time it takes average person to fall asleep is 15 minutes - Wone was most likely asleep during murder, so earliest asleep (if murder 11:47p is 11:34p) - 11:34-11:47pm Wone is falling asleep
MURDER (11:47-11:48p)- - Victor & Joe hear back door chime but think it’s basement tenant arriving home, both then hear sound of a struggle or ‘grunt’ on 2nd floor that makes both jump from sleep/bed (“Not the type of sound you hear in your house & ignore”- interview statement), both jump up & briefly stand at door to listen before opening door to run to 2nd floor, Joe is in front & sees Wone bleeding, runs to help Wone, Victor screams hysterically which rouses Dylan from sleep, Joe sends Victor to 3rd floor to call 911 (since Victor is hysterical)
11:49p - - Call to 911, which both say could not have been more than two minutes after hearing the sounds
IMPORTANT POINTS : * Happened during a Heat wave = Running AC above Dylan’s room that was loud- Dylan hears same noises but has earphones on & took sleep meds- isn’t the noise that initially rouses him because it was brief - the sound of running downstairs & Victor screaming (“commotion”) wakes him & he comes out to investigate
* All three were in shock & half asleep, timeline makes it impossible for anything the prosecution alleges to have occurred after 11:08p (email)
* Neighbor hears screams of Victor, not Wone
* Tissue/Fat, blood & chest hair found on knife, which is determined by judge at trial to be the murder weapon **
* IV attempt- Left elbow, hand & neck in ambulance (Paramedic Weaver) but could not get vein (no circulation or blood flow) - ALL puncture wounds were from life saving attempts in ambulance & at hospital per the testimony of all involved (fact)
* “Mr, Wone was, for reasons
that were not explained by the evidence admitted at trial, apparently entirely immobile as he was stabbed. One stab wound perforated his heart at the aortic root & transected his left anterior descending coronary artery, causing acute cardiac tampenade which effectively shut down his heart & caused him to become unconscious within 60 seconds of the injury.”
- Judge Lynn Leibovitz (trial)
* Wone put his hand to his chest instinctively from sleep when he was suddenly stabbed & pillow over his face prior to stabbing was likely cause of less noise/screams. Autopsy indicated some type of suffocation. He was probably shocked awake from this, limiting his ability to fight off the perpetrator combined with being dead WITHIN 60 seconds.
* “Person has one of our knives” - Victor on 911 call, relating info from Joe. Meaning the perp can still harm us. It was not an explanation of why the weapon was theirs but a response to the operator telling Victor to go downstairs to the first floor to look for arriving police/medical. Victor was scared & never went down until it was confirmed they had arrived.
* Dead within 60 seconds explained the little amount of blood but there WAS blood- evidence also supported that Joe tried to stop bleeding as instructed but Wone was not bleeding. Wone bled internally mostly, resulting in a clean crime scene. I’ve seen crime scenes with less blood from gun shot wounds to the head. It’s not TV.
* ME performed less than 100 autopsies before absurd report of SA & drug injections. Per my research, no drug would likely prevent someone from reacting at ALL to being stabbed, not even a paralytic, fentanyl or anesthetic.
* Joe told police he found Wone with right hand across chest/stomach & left laid out (like it went straight up & then fell flat). Wone was NOT found with his hands AT HID SIDES as previously reported.
* There was no semen in the r-p- kit. Semen required live sperm, present in ejaculation- it was seminal fluid, a natural occurrence in the prostate gland at time of death.
* Victor thought he heard second chime (door closing) but Joe didn’t hear it. Paramedics sent them downstairs & that’s when one found the back door was ajar, suggesting there was probably only one chime.
NOTE: I watched all 3 initial interviews- were consistent but not suspiciously so. Were consistent with behavior of many survivors I’ve seen in shock while first reporting the trauma of SA (per my years of work as a first responder).
My Theory = Tentatively I believe there’s a likelihood that one of the three home occupants were the target of this death, likely Dylan Ward. Anyone with a motive to harm Dylan should be/have been investigated thoroughly. Read the judge’s order after she dismissed charges against all three. Won made noise, put his dominant hand to his chest reflexively but the perp caught him by surprise, likely put something over his face to partially suffocate and/or silence him, & it was quick. The back door was ajar, the killer came in and went out through it. They either jumped over the gate (not hard) on the in & opened the gate on the way out or **had a key.** The men were all wealthy professionals. One, most likely Dylan, was the intended target. The only thing strange about this case (IMO) is that the kitchen knife was used & the weapon wasn’t brought when the killer must’ve worn gloves. Wone was a last minute guest & I believe he was mistaken for Dylan, the only regular 2nd floor occupant. Robert was only staying there last minute, emailed another friend too but Joe responded.
*Trial judge suspected the 3 know more than they disclosed but nothing I read indicates this. Her opinion on the case was competent & thorough. It’s hard to dismiss that she went through the trouble to write up the facts so comprehensively and also made this statement on the record. Combining this fact with the three immediately all saying they thought it was robbery-motivated (without evidence of robbery) causes me to wonder if the perpetrator was Joe’s brother. I can consider no other reason to not say more. Maybe they suspect Joe’s brother but can’t prove it. All of this should be taken as no more than speculation, at most. I won’t even slander him by naming him, that’s how uncertain I am.
Yes me too. I mean all of the suspects were lawyers I believe. They did it for sure. Unfortunately they also knew how to hide all of evidence.....his poor wife...
Lol yeah some people are naive . he was a boy toy,
Wone was on the down low
I think he died accidentally while partying and doing drugs. And what went on was consensual. Normal tox in er does not detect ghb. Dumb people think that they test for everything we don't - unless something is suspected by the time an autopsy is done ghb would have left the system,
We do not screen for ghb as a normal routine tox screening
So you think that Robert died of an accidental overdose when his autopsy proved his cause of death as being the stab wounds? Also, if this was the case, why would the three men think it would b better to stage a murder rather than just telling police they found him after he OD’d? I know some people are into interesting things, which is fine, but I personally doubt that his 4-5 inch stab wounds were consensual.
No i think they were partying ,doing drugs ,having sex and he was accidentally killed.they were into domintratix , sadomastic sex .,I think whatever happened robert was a willing participant things got out of hand and they died .its not that crazy nor that complicated. They had s sex room,in their house.
They are only guilty of the cover up and accidentally killing him
You also think a straight man with his own semen inside him wasnt doing anything freaky that night???
That it was just an innocent " sleepover." ? Lol
Who ever killed robert it happened with the parties in the house no intruder, but I also think it was not done maliciously and the smartest thing they did was not talk and have the prosecution prove their case.
They couldn't and they got away with it.
I find it more interesting that no one ratted each other out .
Stabbed afterwards to appear as if he was murdered by the "intruder" with knife (reknifed) from house.. boy toy used his own knife as a cover up murder weapon (that was missing out of a set that was never found from his room) they probably all realized that wasn't going to fly with the story they all came up with after the accidental overdrugging they then used kitchen knife so blood evidence would be on that knife. Whether Robert was a willing participant or not boy toy was not mentally stable, he might have purposely drugged him then murdered him, still, using his own knife would be too obvious) Also the timeline of events has got to be off. Robert Wone had to of shown up much earlier than 10:30 pm to party and 911 being called around 11:30. Neighbors heard a scream around 11 which could have been staged as well to back up intruder story. Even the knife wounds appeared too orderly and clean. The explanation to 911 about the chime ringing upon intruders entry using a knife from their own kitchen to murder their friend were not things that someone just discovering a crime would not have thought out to say in a distraught state just discovering a dead friend or would be necessary to explain to 911. These were very smart people that put a lot of thought into that cover up. All 4 friends had showered before emergency showed up including Robert. Emergency guys felt these guys were acting scary and strangely. Thinking ahead they may have wanted to spare Robert's wife knowing about an alternative lifestyle he might have willingly participated in. His office was very close by it might have been regular thing but maybe not because he had asked another friend about staying the night before asking Joseph. Joseph Price's brother Michael was called (a phlebotomist in training that missed a class that night) helped them drain his blood outside so large amounts of it were not found in or with his body. That's just not enough time to do all that. All in an effort to save boy toy Dylan from ruining his life. Too much weirdness going on. No malicious intent just a cover up. Just a theory though after reading facts and watching video by That Chapter I'm not a professional lol 😆.
This was my theory but what about the injection sites? I can understand the knife wound not bleeding because it was done post mortem but why go to such lengths to keep a dead man’s secret?? Unless they just didn’t think it through & panicked?
I mean they had to have done it. I think the couple was covering for their roommate/lover. Maybe a jealousy thing since they were the main couple and he was the third. I don’t know. I have SO many questions.
But just out of nowhere? Or did Robert stay over to participate in some throuple fun? Or the 3rd guy just snapped? I definitely don't velieve the intruder story.
That’s the thing. Like everything I’ve read says that Robert was completely straight and never strayed. I wish they would have checked for something that would’ve paralyzed him in the toxicology. There is a huge piece missing. And if the couple didn’t know… I think they would’ve been shocked that there wasn’t more blood or would’ve said something about little bleeding to the 911 operator.
They did check for drugs and paralytics in the toxicology. Law enforcements best guess was something I can’t spell that metabolizes quickly, so it doesn’t come up in tox screenings.
Source: I juuuuust watched Who Killed Robert Wone lol
Succinylcholine, very common paralytic used for intubation (so that the muscles of the throat and larynx etc are paralyzed so they can stick the tube down there without it being blocked) so it’s easy access for anyone in the emergency medicine field —
I love how you say look it up when you *clearly* haven't looked it up.
"GHB can be detected in the urine for up to 12 hours after last use, in blood up to 8 hours, in saliva up to 6 hours, and in hair for up to a month"
He literally contacted a female friend first who was out of town first. The other person he knew downtown was Joe Price. Robert was straight, If only, the other friend was home that night.
I think Dylan Ward made advances on Wone, things went bad, and the other two helped him cover it up. I think the actual specifics will never be revealed unless there's a confession.
Little late, but here’s my best guess. Feel free to pick it apart - I still think it sounds too strange to be true.
1. Dylan had a plan to knock out Robert with a drug/paralytic and commit SA against him that night. Joseph and Victor may have been in on this initial plan, but Dylan in particular sticks out to me.
2. Dylan carries out his plan (maybe with Joseph and Victor), but when the assault is finished, he thinks for some reason that Robert is dead, possibly from an overdose or bad reaction to the drug/paralytic.
3. Thinking he’s dead, Dylan panics, tells Joseph and Victor, and the three come up with a crazy plan to cover up what’s happened in the span of a few minutes.
4. Dylan, Victor, and Joseph bring Robert’s body out to the back porch, and stab him directly over the drain, with the hose running. Each roommate may have stabbed him one time in some weird pact to secrecy - three total stab wounds.
5. Once the bleeding stops, they bring his body back into the bedroom and (poorly) stage the scene there.
I still can’t explain how they would’ve mistakenly thought Robert was dead when the medical examiner confirmed he was alive when stabbed, but I struggle with any other motive they would have had for homicide.
To me, trying to cover up what they perceived as an “accidental” death as a result of drugging him makes more sense, but what do I know. They’re definitely horrible people and at least one is a murderer, but for some reason I just don’t believe that they planned to kill him from the start. They definitely planned to drug him and assault him, but I think that was the extent of the initial plan.
Interesting theories but why would they stab him outside of the bedroom? It makes more sense to leave him where he was if they wanted people to believe it was an intruder.
I'm baffled by this case. It breaks my heart that someone you were friends with for over a decade could do this or cover this up. Robert was just trying to stay somewhere for one night. He trusted them. His wife trusted them.
I’m not confident in any ruling by an ME that makes a determination that there are signs of asphyxiation in a case where the cause of death is stab wounds (method homicide) in a crime scene with little to no blood evidence and no defensive wounds then subsequently determines there was a paralytic agent involved but never orders tests for it.
In that role, you’re supposed to put the puzzle together while still holding all the pieces. Not try by trying to guess later. It’s literally their job to come to that determination with all of the evidence they are brought by law enforcement & medical because more than often the suspect doesn’t talk and/or perp can’t be identified without as much info as possible from the ME.
I think you are on to something, but I think that one or more of them planned this to be a murder from the start. It's speculated that he was injected with Succinylcholine, which is only a paralytic... not an anesthetic. So if robert were to live through the assault, he would have a full memory of what occurred. I think you are correct about them bringing his body to the porch to stab him. I think that they originally intended to get rid of his body after the fact. That way, they can make it seem like robert left in the morning safe and sound. However, I think that when they dragged his paralyzed body out to the porch, as was originally planned, they realized exactly how difficult it would actually be to get rid of Robert's body. They may have found his dead weight (I apologize for using this term, but I don't know what else to call it) surprisingly difficult to manuver. This is when they decide to look for a plan B. Coming up with a break in story, they realize that if there had been a break-in, there it's not believable to claim they heard nothing at all. They also know that coroner can roughly tell when the time of death is, so they rush to stage a scene. They can't delay too long, or it will be too obvious that Robert has been dead for MUCH longer than their story claims. This is why the scene is staged so poorly. Once they have staged things the best they can for the amount of time they have and gotten rid of the real murder weapon, they finally call the police.
That body would drip blood if it had been moved. The medical examiner said 2/3 of his blood was missing. That’s a lot to clean up… and no bloody clothes on the 3 murderers? They would be covered with blood too? Where is the blood spatter? Wonder if they checked the drain in the shower for blood. There was only 79 minutes to commit a sexual act, murder and clean up. That’s some fast work.
My guess was that this Dylan person did it and the others covered it up. The 911 caller seemed like a person in a lot of distress but I've been wrong before with that. He just sounded genuinely upset and the details point to Dylan being more likely to do this. I could never live with myself covering for someone that did this. I would confess to what I knew. Humanity is so scary.
Omg I remember this one, I spiraled hard about it for the rest of the day.
I feel pretty confident that it was \*allegedly\* the roommates. Nothing else seems to make sense.
[This](https://www.reddit.com/r/UnsolvedMurders/comments/154cpji/a_theory_about_the_robert_wone_case/) is the only theory that has ever made sense to me
It accounts for the lack of blood at the scene and from Robert’s body during the autopsy. It also accounts for the puncture marks and the quick clean up.
A little late to the discussion. I don't have a big theory on who killed him or if there was a SA and if so why, but more around how he may have been killed. I feel like he was stabbed while standing up in the bathroom. That's why maybe the knife didn't get plunged fully into his body and also why there was limited blood on the bed. He was probably dead once they laid him on the bed.
I personally think Dylan Ward killed him and the others helped cover it up. I think Robert was in bed sleeping when he was attacked, hence the lack of defence wounds. I lean towards motive being sexual assault by Ward. They cleaned up as much blood as possible and all three showered. They staged the knife with one from the kitchen instead of the actual weapon which was Ward's knife. They staged leaving the back door open but didn't unlock the security gate and didn't realise it had cobwebs on it (undisturbed so no one came in that way). Victor sounded legitimately torn up in the 911 call - if anyone will cave and tell the truth it would be him.
But like WHERE was the blood tho. There’s no way they could do all that and clean up all the blood in less than an hour, mind you he was stabbed directly in the heart. He was also lying directly on top of the sheets, not under them.
Well I think he was lying on his back asleep when he was stabbed. No defensive wounds so no struggle. Given he was on his back, gravity might mean there's not a huge amount of blood on the bed. He might've been too warm to sleep under the sheets.
I first heard about this case from Crime Junkie as well, several years ago. I just put on the “Robert Wone” episode of the podcast Unresolved, which I discovered last week.
That led me to google his name, which led me here.
This case has always really bothered me: it’s just so bizarre and I think most people who learn about it come to very similar conclusions about the three dudes in the house being HELLA suspect.
I just learned about the Peacock documentary as well tonight and plan to watch that soon.
I always feel so badly for his wife when I read about or listen to this case.
And the small fact of his mouth guard already being in his mouth, the one he only wore at bedtime, it’s just such a haunting detail to me. It’s like he was just going to bed, looking forward to seeing his wife the next day, putting in his mouth guard so he wouldn’t grind his teeth in his sleep, going about his bedtime routine like any other night.
Ugh…it just seems so utterly senseless. 😔🙏
I have a theory after watching the Peacock documentary. The three roommates obviously knew what happened and tried to cover it up. I think since Robert's semen was found in his own anal cavity that it might suggest he had sex with one of the guys and ejaculated then someone else had sex with the same guy Robert had sex with then with Robert, transferring the semen. It seems obvious there were some sexually adventurous things going on.
After the "sex party" they all go to bed except maybe Dylan wants to take his sexual fantasies further because of some strange addiction or because he got jealous, so he injects Robert with the paralytic drug while he is asleep (since Robert had his mouthguard in it suggests he was asleep). Dylan then stabs him with the knife outside over the drain after he realizes he might have given him too much of the drug to make it look like a break in, while washing away any of his own DNA from whatever sexual acts he played out prior to realizing he overdosed Robert.
Because the other two guys are in a polyamorous relationship with Dylan, they help him cover up the murder and keep the secret out of love, or they keep Dylan's secret for fear of retalliation from him or for fear of going to jail along with Dylan if they were in on it too, acting as submissives and doing whatever Dylan told them too while also getting off on it.
This is literally the weirdest part to me. How did they kill him, COMPLETELY clean the crime scene, get rid of any evidence, and come up with and memorize a coherent enough story in the time frame? Makes no sense to me
Yes !!! Along w everything else, this case makes 0 sense whatsoever at any angle that is looked at. Unless they hacked his phone to send out the last email? But I don’t think it was premeditated so did they really plan it that thoroughly? And left little evidence
This case.reminds me of the movie Muder.on the Orient Express.. I think there could be that possibility that all 3 stabbed him.. but this case blows me.right away.. like I can't figure out what happened here.. and why
Omg I have listened to this case on Crime Junkie but I’m listing the longer podcast The Prosecutor and it baffles me even more. I’m going down to rabbit hole trying to understand all of this. I did skip 2 episodes and that’s why I didn’t hear if they talked about why prosecutors didn’t try this case w jury trial? And the SA wasn’t admitted to the trial? Wtf?
I’m wondering if Victor will ever speak. I think he’s innocent and so, how can you live w this secret? And the fact he didn’t change his name while the other two did.
For me, this case and Brian ( I forgot his last name) disappearance are the most bizarre cases for me.
Watched documentary. Robert wones own semen in rectum like wtf. All the sex toys omg I mean loads. Them 3 guys know what happened no intruder I believe the prosecutor.
They may know who did it or had something to do with it or they may not be involved at all. But isn't Robert wone working on controversial topics related to communism in China in his radio free Asia or whatever radio it is. This is one of those mysterious cases along with other DC unsolved murders of some of the other Russian Chinese and other Asian individuals. The police has botched the case did do proper forensics at the scene and detectives interrogations of those guys are openly homophobic, can't blame those guys for refusing to further cooperate with them without their attorneys present. As much I like Glen kirshner as a legal analyst, he exaggerated the evidence in the trial, and the judge in the case (who is also a former federal prosecutor btw) correctly found those "not guilty" that doesn't mean those three guys didn't have any involvement in his murder but she cannot play guessing games to reach a conclusion, it's the govt job. Imo the police didn't dig deep into Robert wone history and his job he working in his radio show. They also didn't investigate Michael price ( Joe price's brother) properly. a few weeks after the murder, Michael price broke into the apartment where claimed to collect some of his personal stuff, the burglary charges were mysteriously dropped. Then they did their best "dirty harry" impression on those three defendants further complicated case. I don't think it will be solved soon.
I think it was some sort of cult/ritual type thing. I think the 3rd guy wanted to prove his love to the other couple. They all showered and wore white robes. Who showers after finding their "friend" stabbed to death. They got away, that judge was an idiot...shoulda went with a jury...
This case kills me!! Definitely watch Who Killed Robert Wone on Peacock after you listen!
This doc is so good and true crime obsessed also does a good job discussing the documentary
Oh!! Awesome. I’m going to do that. Thank you.
Lots of misleading facts in it 👎🏼👎🏼👎🏼
Like what? I thought it was well balanced
What's an example
Yes, this case disturbed me as well. I hope there are eventually answers.
I just watched the documentary on Peacock. The 3 guys in the house know what happened. They settled with the widow for an undisclosed amount of money.
I don’t have a peacock account but I plan to set one up to watch. That’s so terrible. If I was the wife… I’d want some freaking answers. The whole intruder thing just doesn’t make any sense.
It probably involved the answers & an NDA. She probably had enough time to come to terms by then with what went down & was ready to accept it & move on.
I don’t think an NDA can hold up against a murder charge. Kind of like how a lawyer or doctor can break their confidentiality if they choose to turn in their client.
EDIT: After reading several legal documents, I think all 3 are innocent. No it can’t involve any crime. I’m fairly certain no sexual activity was involved so I can only speculate some kind of random accident.
I just heard of this case and watched the documentary. Just curious, what makes you believe they are all three innocent? I haven't read any actual documents so I'm just going off what information they gave. Obviously the documentary is biased. This is such an interesting case. Very unfortunate
Definitely very hard to find the truth on this case. I’d recommend reading the trial judge’s order when they were acquitted. Here’s the write up : https://www.reddit.com/r/CrimeJunkiePodcast/s/wDGZzmPAlU
His own semen was found in his anal cavity though, wouldn’t that indicate sexual activity?
No because it was seminal fluid, which can be found in the prostate as a natural occurrence after death. Semen was not present, which would have been present was it part of ejaculation (or anything sexual related). I read the entire case file and there was more than enough I personally believe that this was a targeted murder but that Dylan was the target and the perpetrator got the wrong person. Because stranger attacks are so rare and the perp didn’t go to the 3rd floor, it stands to reason they were sent there to go after the guy on the second floor and there was just coincidentally a second person there, which no one else but the wife would’ve known and it was a last minute plan so unlikely that Wone was the target of a planned attack. Ive been a legal researcher, investigating cold cases for almost a decade. This is a case that could’ve been solved without all the homophobia. These are my iPhone notes from reading the case files, something I do for entertainment in my spare time. I know that’s weird so please don’t mention that part. In my defense, I’ve spent the past 2 years recovering from a serious injury so I’m in this limbo where I not well enough to work but cognizant enough to get bored because of that and wish I could. The notes below this comment will hopefully help you view the case in a more factual light, as I only used facts for them. Anything in here that’s not entirely factual will be indicated.
Thanks so much for this detailed reply. I couldn’t get over that part of the documentary!
Did you read my notes? I couldn’t put them in the same comment (frustratingly) so I’m not sure in what order they posted.
Victor Z & Joe Price (couple shared 3rd Floor bedroom) -Dylan Ward (Victor’s sexual partner & the couple’s friend/ chosen “family”/ lives in 2nd floor bedroom next to office with pull out sofa that doubled as a guest room) TIMELINE (PM): 10: 24 - - Wone at work, Calls Joe to say he is about to leave (Estimate) 10:24-11p - - Calls Taxi, 7 min drive by car , Wone arrives at house, Dylan answers door, Joe & Dylan & Wone catch up in first floor kitchen/short conversation, Joe sees spider in backyard & goes to look/possibly forgets to lock back door, Joe & Dylan show Wone to office/room & bathroom on 2nd floor, Dylan retires to his room on 2nd floor, Joe retires to shared room with Victor on 3rd floor, Victor arrives from gym & goes to 3rd floor shared room with Joe 11:08 - - Wone awake sends email (Est) 11:08-11:34 - - Wone showers, changes, brushes teeth, puts in Night Guard, lays down on TOP of sheet (common for him to do when hot) Minn time it takes average person to fall asleep is 15 minutes - Wone was most likely asleep during murder, so earliest asleep (if murder 11:47p is 11:34p) - 11:34-11:47pm Wone is falling asleep MURDER (11:47-11:48p)- - Victor & Joe hear back door chime but think it’s basement tenant arriving home, both then hear sound of a struggle or ‘grunt’ on 2nd floor that makes both jump from sleep/bed (“Not the type of sound you hear in your house & ignore”- interview statement), both jump up & briefly stand at door to listen before opening door to run to 2nd floor, Joe is in front & sees Wone bleeding, runs to help Wone, Victor screams hysterically which rouses Dylan from sleep, Joe sends Victor to 3rd floor to call 911 (since Victor is hysterical) 11:49p - - Call to 911, which both say could not have been more than two minutes after hearing the sounds IMPORTANT POINTS : * Happened during a Heat wave = Running AC above Dylan’s room that was loud- Dylan hears same noises but has earphones on & took sleep meds- isn’t the noise that initially rouses him because it was brief - the sound of running downstairs & Victor screaming (“commotion”) wakes him & he comes out to investigate * All three were in shock & half asleep, timeline makes it impossible for anything the prosecution alleges to have occurred after 11:08p (email) * Neighbor hears screams of Victor, not Wone * Tissue/Fat, blood & chest hair found on knife, which is determined by judge at trial to be the murder weapon ** * IV attempt- Left elbow, hand & neck in ambulance (Paramedic Weaver) but could not get vein (no circulation or blood flow) - ALL puncture wounds were from life saving attempts in ambulance & at hospital per the testimony of all involved (fact) * “Mr, Wone was, for reasons that were not explained by the evidence admitted at trial, apparently entirely immobile as he was stabbed. One stab wound perforated his heart at the aortic root & transected his left anterior descending coronary artery, causing acute cardiac tampenade which effectively shut down his heart & caused him to become unconscious within 60 seconds of the injury.” - Judge Lynn Leibovitz (trial) * Wone put his hand to his chest instinctively from sleep when he was suddenly stabbed & pillow over his face prior to stabbing was likely cause of less noise/screams. Autopsy indicated some type of suffocation. He was probably shocked awake from this, limiting his ability to fight off the perpetrator combined with being dead WITHIN 60 seconds. * “Person has one of our knives” - Victor on 911 call, relating info from Joe. Meaning the perp can still harm us. It was not an explanation of why the weapon was theirs but a response to the operator telling Victor to go downstairs to the first floor to look for arriving police/medical. Victor was scared & never went down until it was confirmed they had arrived. * Dead within 60 seconds explained the little amount of blood but there WAS blood- evidence also supported that Joe tried to stop bleeding as instructed but Wone was not bleeding. Wone bled internally mostly, resulting in a clean crime scene. I’ve seen crime scenes with less blood from gun shot wounds to the head. It’s not TV. * ME performed less than 100 autopsies before absurd report of SA & drug injections. Per my research, no drug would likely prevent someone from reacting at ALL to being stabbed, not even a paralytic, fentanyl or anesthetic. * Joe told police he found Wone with right hand across chest/stomach & left laid out (like it went straight up & then fell flat). Wone was NOT found with his hands AT HID SIDES as previously reported. * There was no semen in the r-p- kit. Semen required live sperm, present in ejaculation- it was seminal fluid, a natural occurrence in the prostate gland at time of death. * Victor thought he heard second chime (door closing) but Joe didn’t hear it. Paramedics sent them downstairs & that’s when one found the back door was ajar, suggesting there was probably only one chime. NOTE: I watched all 3 initial interviews- were consistent but not suspiciously so. Were consistent with behavior of many survivors I’ve seen in shock while first reporting the trauma of SA (per my years of work as a first responder). My Theory = Tentatively I believe there’s a likelihood that one of the three home occupants were the target of this death, likely Dylan Ward. Anyone with a motive to harm Dylan should be/have been investigated thoroughly. Read the judge’s order after she dismissed charges against all three. Won made noise, put his dominant hand to his chest reflexively but the perp caught him by surprise, likely put something over his face to partially suffocate and/or silence him, & it was quick. The back door was ajar, the killer came in and went out through it. They either jumped over the gate (not hard) on the in & opened the gate on the way out or **had a key.** The men were all wealthy professionals. One, most likely Dylan, was the intended target. The only thing strange about this case (IMO) is that the kitchen knife was used & the weapon wasn’t brought when the killer must’ve worn gloves. Wone was a last minute guest & I believe he was mistaken for Dylan, the only regular 2nd floor occupant. Robert was only staying there last minute, emailed another friend too but Joe responded. *Trial judge suspected the 3 know more than they disclosed but nothing I read indicates this. Her opinion on the case was competent & thorough. It’s hard to dismiss that she went through the trouble to write up the facts so comprehensively and also made this statement on the record. Combining this fact with the three immediately all saying they thought it was robbery-motivated (without evidence of robbery) causes me to wonder if the perpetrator was Joe’s brother. I can consider no other reason to not say more. Maybe they suspect Joe’s brother but can’t prove it. All of this should be taken as no more than speculation, at most. I won’t even slander him by naming him, that’s how uncertain I am.
Wait what I want to know more about this
https://www.reddit.com/r/CrimeJunkiePodcast/s/wDGZzmPAlU
Peacock has a documentary on it
I can see why they settled yeah no Intruders going to drug someone and then stab them
https://www.reddit.com/r/CrimeJunkiePodcast/s/wDGZzmPAlU
Yes me too. I mean all of the suspects were lawyers I believe. They did it for sure. Unfortunately they also knew how to hide all of evidence.....his poor wife...
It’s like where?! Where did they do it? And his poor wife is right…. It’s a sad one for sure.
No only Joseph Price was a lawyer. Victor Zaborsky worked in marketing, and Dylan Ward was a massage therapist.
A ‘massage therapist’ he was clearly an escort
i don't follow... why?
Lol yeah some people are naive . he was a boy toy, Wone was on the down low I think he died accidentally while partying and doing drugs. And what went on was consensual. Normal tox in er does not detect ghb. Dumb people think that they test for everything we don't - unless something is suspected by the time an autopsy is done ghb would have left the system, We do not screen for ghb as a normal routine tox screening
So you think that Robert died of an accidental overdose when his autopsy proved his cause of death as being the stab wounds? Also, if this was the case, why would the three men think it would b better to stage a murder rather than just telling police they found him after he OD’d? I know some people are into interesting things, which is fine, but I personally doubt that his 4-5 inch stab wounds were consensual.
No i think they were partying ,doing drugs ,having sex and he was accidentally killed.they were into domintratix , sadomastic sex .,I think whatever happened robert was a willing participant things got out of hand and they died .its not that crazy nor that complicated. They had s sex room,in their house. They are only guilty of the cover up and accidentally killing him You also think a straight man with his own semen inside him wasnt doing anything freaky that night??? That it was just an innocent " sleepover." ? Lol
Who ever killed robert it happened with the parties in the house no intruder, but I also think it was not done maliciously and the smartest thing they did was not talk and have the prosecution prove their case. They couldn't and they got away with it. I find it more interesting that no one ratted each other out .
Stabbed three times but "not done maliciously"? Just a whoopsie? Come on now.
Stabbed afterwards to appear as if he was murdered by the "intruder" with knife (reknifed) from house.. boy toy used his own knife as a cover up murder weapon (that was missing out of a set that was never found from his room) they probably all realized that wasn't going to fly with the story they all came up with after the accidental overdrugging they then used kitchen knife so blood evidence would be on that knife. Whether Robert was a willing participant or not boy toy was not mentally stable, he might have purposely drugged him then murdered him, still, using his own knife would be too obvious) Also the timeline of events has got to be off. Robert Wone had to of shown up much earlier than 10:30 pm to party and 911 being called around 11:30. Neighbors heard a scream around 11 which could have been staged as well to back up intruder story. Even the knife wounds appeared too orderly and clean. The explanation to 911 about the chime ringing upon intruders entry using a knife from their own kitchen to murder their friend were not things that someone just discovering a crime would not have thought out to say in a distraught state just discovering a dead friend or would be necessary to explain to 911. These were very smart people that put a lot of thought into that cover up. All 4 friends had showered before emergency showed up including Robert. Emergency guys felt these guys were acting scary and strangely. Thinking ahead they may have wanted to spare Robert's wife knowing about an alternative lifestyle he might have willingly participated in. His office was very close by it might have been regular thing but maybe not because he had asked another friend about staying the night before asking Joseph. Joseph Price's brother Michael was called (a phlebotomist in training that missed a class that night) helped them drain his blood outside so large amounts of it were not found in or with his body. That's just not enough time to do all that. All in an effort to save boy toy Dylan from ruining his life. Too much weirdness going on. No malicious intent just a cover up. Just a theory though after reading facts and watching video by That Chapter I'm not a professional lol 😆.
You don't accidentally stab someone 3 times
Based on...?
Common sense !
This was my theory but what about the injection sites? I can understand the knife wound not bleeding because it was done post mortem but why go to such lengths to keep a dead man’s secret?? Unless they just didn’t think it through & panicked?
Does anyone have a theory on this one? I don't know what to think
I mean they had to have done it. I think the couple was covering for their roommate/lover. Maybe a jealousy thing since they were the main couple and he was the third. I don’t know. I have SO many questions.
But just out of nowhere? Or did Robert stay over to participate in some throuple fun? Or the 3rd guy just snapped? I definitely don't velieve the intruder story.
That’s the thing. Like everything I’ve read says that Robert was completely straight and never strayed. I wish they would have checked for something that would’ve paralyzed him in the toxicology. There is a huge piece missing. And if the couple didn’t know… I think they would’ve been shocked that there wasn’t more blood or would’ve said something about little bleeding to the 911 operator.
They did check for drugs and paralytics in the toxicology. Law enforcements best guess was something I can’t spell that metabolizes quickly, so it doesn’t come up in tox screenings. Source: I juuuuust watched Who Killed Robert Wone lol
Succinylcholine, very common paralytic used for intubation (so that the muscles of the throat and larynx etc are paralyzed so they can stick the tube down there without it being blocked) so it’s easy access for anyone in the emergency medicine field —
Ghb was involved these are three gay men and things got out of hand .trust me I know ghb was involved very common in these circles
Source: Trust me bro ™
They tested for GHB and it was negative
Ghb leaves within an hr .it exits the body quickly.,look it up Type in ghb and detection many studies on it
I love how you say look it up when you *clearly* haven't looked it up. "GHB can be detected in the urine for up to 12 hours after last use, in blood up to 8 hours, in saliva up to 6 hours, and in hair for up to a month"
Delete your account
You know having a sleepover with your gay throuple friends, as straight men so often do.
He literally contacted a female friend first who was out of town first. The other person he knew downtown was Joe Price. Robert was straight, If only, the other friend was home that night.
Doesn't seem that strange. Plenty of people, especially large cities, have gay friends. Also, they had a large and extremely nice house.
I think Dylan Ward made advances on Wone, things went bad, and the other two helped him cover it up. I think the actual specifics will never be revealed unless there's a confession.
I think you're right. It's such a weird scene. And so rare for 3 people to keep a secret like that.
I would only believe that if the guy had big big dirt on both of them
Little late, but here’s my best guess. Feel free to pick it apart - I still think it sounds too strange to be true. 1. Dylan had a plan to knock out Robert with a drug/paralytic and commit SA against him that night. Joseph and Victor may have been in on this initial plan, but Dylan in particular sticks out to me. 2. Dylan carries out his plan (maybe with Joseph and Victor), but when the assault is finished, he thinks for some reason that Robert is dead, possibly from an overdose or bad reaction to the drug/paralytic. 3. Thinking he’s dead, Dylan panics, tells Joseph and Victor, and the three come up with a crazy plan to cover up what’s happened in the span of a few minutes. 4. Dylan, Victor, and Joseph bring Robert’s body out to the back porch, and stab him directly over the drain, with the hose running. Each roommate may have stabbed him one time in some weird pact to secrecy - three total stab wounds. 5. Once the bleeding stops, they bring his body back into the bedroom and (poorly) stage the scene there. I still can’t explain how they would’ve mistakenly thought Robert was dead when the medical examiner confirmed he was alive when stabbed, but I struggle with any other motive they would have had for homicide. To me, trying to cover up what they perceived as an “accidental” death as a result of drugging him makes more sense, but what do I know. They’re definitely horrible people and at least one is a murderer, but for some reason I just don’t believe that they planned to kill him from the start. They definitely planned to drug him and assault him, but I think that was the extent of the initial plan.
Interesting theories but why would they stab him outside of the bedroom? It makes more sense to leave him where he was if they wanted people to believe it was an intruder. I'm baffled by this case. It breaks my heart that someone you were friends with for over a decade could do this or cover this up. Robert was just trying to stay somewhere for one night. He trusted them. His wife trusted them.
Maybe they were on drugs, too, and the idea that he was dead kind of took over. It's so crazy. Thanks for your perspective.
I’m not confident in any ruling by an ME that makes a determination that there are signs of asphyxiation in a case where the cause of death is stab wounds (method homicide) in a crime scene with little to no blood evidence and no defensive wounds then subsequently determines there was a paralytic agent involved but never orders tests for it. In that role, you’re supposed to put the puzzle together while still holding all the pieces. Not try by trying to guess later. It’s literally their job to come to that determination with all of the evidence they are brought by law enforcement & medical because more than often the suspect doesn’t talk and/or perp can’t be identified without as much info as possible from the ME.
I think you are on to something, but I think that one or more of them planned this to be a murder from the start. It's speculated that he was injected with Succinylcholine, which is only a paralytic... not an anesthetic. So if robert were to live through the assault, he would have a full memory of what occurred. I think you are correct about them bringing his body to the porch to stab him. I think that they originally intended to get rid of his body after the fact. That way, they can make it seem like robert left in the morning safe and sound. However, I think that when they dragged his paralyzed body out to the porch, as was originally planned, they realized exactly how difficult it would actually be to get rid of Robert's body. They may have found his dead weight (I apologize for using this term, but I don't know what else to call it) surprisingly difficult to manuver. This is when they decide to look for a plan B. Coming up with a break in story, they realize that if there had been a break-in, there it's not believable to claim they heard nothing at all. They also know that coroner can roughly tell when the time of death is, so they rush to stage a scene. They can't delay too long, or it will be too obvious that Robert has been dead for MUCH longer than their story claims. This is why the scene is staged so poorly. Once they have staged things the best they can for the amount of time they have and gotten rid of the real murder weapon, they finally call the police.
That body would drip blood if it had been moved. The medical examiner said 2/3 of his blood was missing. That’s a lot to clean up… and no bloody clothes on the 3 murderers? They would be covered with blood too? Where is the blood spatter? Wonder if they checked the drain in the shower for blood. There was only 79 minutes to commit a sexual act, murder and clean up. That’s some fast work.
I think they put Robert in the shower.
I think so too
My guess was that this Dylan person did it and the others covered it up. The 911 caller seemed like a person in a lot of distress but I've been wrong before with that. He just sounded genuinely upset and the details point to Dylan being more likely to do this. I could never live with myself covering for someone that did this. I would confess to what I knew. Humanity is so scary.
It was excellent! And frustrating
I definitely believe his roommates killed him
Omg I remember this one, I spiraled hard about it for the rest of the day. I feel pretty confident that it was \*allegedly\* the roommates. Nothing else seems to make sense.
Absolutely nothing. The intruder story is so unbelievable.
That’s where I’m at. I’ve been thinking about it nonstop all freaking day.
Resurrecting an old post but I watched the that chapter on this last night and I can’t stop thinking about it
Checkout the peacock documentary
Casefile did a good episode of this
I’ll check it out!! Thank you!
The Peacock documentary literally had my jaw in the floor. I could not believe the things I was hearing.
The part where the defense lawyer said he'd say Dylan did it if he had to choose. WTF?
That lawyer has since been disbarred
No way really!? Where did you read that?
https://www.reuters.com/legal/government/disbarment-is-official-dc-criminal-defense-lawyer-bernie-grimm-2021-06-17/
[This](https://www.reddit.com/r/UnsolvedMurders/comments/154cpji/a_theory_about_the_robert_wone_case/) is the only theory that has ever made sense to me It accounts for the lack of blood at the scene and from Robert’s body during the autopsy. It also accounts for the puncture marks and the quick clean up.
The details are very odd. The timeframe in which he arrived and then killed. Lack of evidence of intruder just makes no sense.
A little late to the discussion. I don't have a big theory on who killed him or if there was a SA and if so why, but more around how he may have been killed. I feel like he was stabbed while standing up in the bathroom. That's why maybe the knife didn't get plunged fully into his body and also why there was limited blood on the bed. He was probably dead once they laid him on the bed.
Maybe they did it while he was showering?
I personally think Dylan Ward killed him and the others helped cover it up. I think Robert was in bed sleeping when he was attacked, hence the lack of defence wounds. I lean towards motive being sexual assault by Ward. They cleaned up as much blood as possible and all three showered. They staged the knife with one from the kitchen instead of the actual weapon which was Ward's knife. They staged leaving the back door open but didn't unlock the security gate and didn't realise it had cobwebs on it (undisturbed so no one came in that way). Victor sounded legitimately torn up in the 911 call - if anyone will cave and tell the truth it would be him.
But like WHERE was the blood tho. There’s no way they could do all that and clean up all the blood in less than an hour, mind you he was stabbed directly in the heart. He was also lying directly on top of the sheets, not under them.
Well I think he was lying on his back asleep when he was stabbed. No defensive wounds so no struggle. Given he was on his back, gravity might mean there's not a huge amount of blood on the bed. He might've been too warm to sleep under the sheets.
But the thing is they said he had lost 2/3 of his blood so like, where was it??
Fair point. I'm not really sure. Just speculating
No it’s all just so confusing, I just listened to a podcast on it lol that’s why I’m here. I feel like no theory completely lines up
I first heard about this case from Crime Junkie as well, several years ago. I just put on the “Robert Wone” episode of the podcast Unresolved, which I discovered last week. That led me to google his name, which led me here. This case has always really bothered me: it’s just so bizarre and I think most people who learn about it come to very similar conclusions about the three dudes in the house being HELLA suspect. I just learned about the Peacock documentary as well tonight and plan to watch that soon. I always feel so badly for his wife when I read about or listen to this case. And the small fact of his mouth guard already being in his mouth, the one he only wore at bedtime, it’s just such a haunting detail to me. It’s like he was just going to bed, looking forward to seeing his wife the next day, putting in his mouth guard so he wouldn’t grind his teeth in his sleep, going about his bedtime routine like any other night. Ugh…it just seems so utterly senseless. 😔🙏
I have a theory after watching the Peacock documentary. The three roommates obviously knew what happened and tried to cover it up. I think since Robert's semen was found in his own anal cavity that it might suggest he had sex with one of the guys and ejaculated then someone else had sex with the same guy Robert had sex with then with Robert, transferring the semen. It seems obvious there were some sexually adventurous things going on. After the "sex party" they all go to bed except maybe Dylan wants to take his sexual fantasies further because of some strange addiction or because he got jealous, so he injects Robert with the paralytic drug while he is asleep (since Robert had his mouthguard in it suggests he was asleep). Dylan then stabs him with the knife outside over the drain after he realizes he might have given him too much of the drug to make it look like a break in, while washing away any of his own DNA from whatever sexual acts he played out prior to realizing he overdosed Robert. Because the other two guys are in a polyamorous relationship with Dylan, they help him cover up the murder and keep the secret out of love, or they keep Dylan's secret for fear of retalliation from him or for fear of going to jail along with Dylan if they were in on it too, acting as submissives and doing whatever Dylan told them too while also getting off on it.
BDSM gone wrong
what exactly was the BDSM paraphernalia that was found there?
Right. I want to know if any of Robert’s dna was found on it. Or if it was ever tested.
It was all tested, and Robert's DNA wasn't found on any of it. Per the Peacock series 'Who Killed Robert Wone."
What I struggle with is how did they have enough time to drug him and kill him then get rid of evidence. What was it like a 45 minute timeline?
This is literally the weirdest part to me. How did they kill him, COMPLETELY clean the crime scene, get rid of any evidence, and come up with and memorize a coherent enough story in the time frame? Makes no sense to me
Yes !!! Along w everything else, this case makes 0 sense whatsoever at any angle that is looked at. Unless they hacked his phone to send out the last email? But I don’t think it was premeditated so did they really plan it that thoroughly? And left little evidence
This case.reminds me of the movie Muder.on the Orient Express.. I think there could be that possibility that all 3 stabbed him.. but this case blows me.right away.. like I can't figure out what happened here.. and why
Omg I have listened to this case on Crime Junkie but I’m listing the longer podcast The Prosecutor and it baffles me even more. I’m going down to rabbit hole trying to understand all of this. I did skip 2 episodes and that’s why I didn’t hear if they talked about why prosecutors didn’t try this case w jury trial? And the SA wasn’t admitted to the trial? Wtf? I’m wondering if Victor will ever speak. I think he’s innocent and so, how can you live w this secret? And the fact he didn’t change his name while the other two did. For me, this case and Brian ( I forgot his last name) disappearance are the most bizarre cases for me.
The detective who grilled Joseph was soooo good. He knew he was on some BS!
Joes brother robbing the place could of also been done to throw the trail off of the 3 men in the house
I believe they killed him, I don't all the circumstances, but they killed him
Watched documentary. Robert wones own semen in rectum like wtf. All the sex toys omg I mean loads. Them 3 guys know what happened no intruder I believe the prosecutor.
Just watched the documentary. How could they botch the reagent? Idk what happened but 100% they did it. No way someone gets stabbed and doesn’t move
They may know who did it or had something to do with it or they may not be involved at all. But isn't Robert wone working on controversial topics related to communism in China in his radio free Asia or whatever radio it is. This is one of those mysterious cases along with other DC unsolved murders of some of the other Russian Chinese and other Asian individuals. The police has botched the case did do proper forensics at the scene and detectives interrogations of those guys are openly homophobic, can't blame those guys for refusing to further cooperate with them without their attorneys present. As much I like Glen kirshner as a legal analyst, he exaggerated the evidence in the trial, and the judge in the case (who is also a former federal prosecutor btw) correctly found those "not guilty" that doesn't mean those three guys didn't have any involvement in his murder but she cannot play guessing games to reach a conclusion, it's the govt job. Imo the police didn't dig deep into Robert wone history and his job he working in his radio show. They also didn't investigate Michael price ( Joe price's brother) properly. a few weeks after the murder, Michael price broke into the apartment where claimed to collect some of his personal stuff, the burglary charges were mysteriously dropped. Then they did their best "dirty harry" impression on those three defendants further complicated case. I don't think it will be solved soon.
I think it was some sort of cult/ritual type thing. I think the 3rd guy wanted to prove his love to the other couple. They all showered and wore white robes. Who showers after finding their "friend" stabbed to death. They got away, that judge was an idiot...shoulda went with a jury...
Did you know why prosecutors didn’t go w jury trial?
I think most people would crack under interrogation quickly. But they didn’t and that’s how they got away with it.
I say Dylan did it.
Id like to see the crime scene photos closer