Woman pleads guilty to federal conspiracy charge after faking her own death to avoid going to prison over swindling the VA out of $300,000
- Julie Wheeler, 44, pleaded guilty to conspiring to obstruct justice and now faces up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine
- Her husband, Rodney Wheeler, 48, is set to go on trial next month
- Wheelers are accused of faking Julie's fall from a cliff so she would not have to serve prison term for fraud
- Rodney's false report sparked massive search operation involving a helicopter, a diving crew and reppellers
- The search team found her cell phone and a shoe at the bottom of a cliff
- Two days after her disappearance, Julie was found hiding in a closet at home
- Julie was sentenced on June 30 to 42 months in prison and three years of supervised release for swindling nearly $300,000 from a VA program
A West Virginia woman has pleaded guilty to a federal conspiracy charge after faking her own death in a fall off a cliff to avoid going to prison for embezzlement.
Julie Wheeler, 44, of Beaver, faces up to five years in prison, a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised release when she is sentenced in January for conspiring to obstruct justice, according to a statement from the US attorney's office.
Prosecutors said Wheeler admitted to conspiring with her husband, Rodney Wheeler, 48, to fake her death at the New River Gorge by pretending she plummeted from an overlook as part of a scheme to keep her out of having to go to prison in a health care fraud case.
Julie Wheeler, 44 (left), has pleaded guilty to conspiring to obstruct justice and now faces up to five years in prison. Prosecutors said Wheeler admitted to conspiring with her husband, Rodney Wheeler, 48 (right), to fake her death
Rodney claimed his wife had fallen from Grandview Park overlook at the New River Gorge
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'Egregious. Wheeler risked the lives of first responders and wasted the critical resources of law enforcement and taxpayers in an attempt to evade her sentence,' said United States Attorney Mike Stuart.
Wheeler's husband told authorities on May 31 that she had fallen from Grandview Park overlook, part of the New River Gorge National River, prompting a massive search and rescue operation.
Rescue personnel found a shoe and cell phone that belonged to Julie at the base of the overlook, which is a steep cliff with a series of ledges leading down to the New River.
Rodney reportedly told police Julie had plummeted from the cliff while trying to search for a missing earring.
A large-scale search was launched, and a rappeller was seen scaling the side of the cliff from which Julie purportedly plummeted
The search for the mom-of-two lasted the better part of two days and involved a National Guard helicopter that was deployed to scour the area and a diving crew that was dispatched to search waters in the gorge.
Investigators also brought in sniffer dogs, while rappellers were seen scaling the side of the cliff from which Julie purportedly plummeted.
The following day, Rodney took to Facebook, writing of his wife: 'They haven’t found her yet but I am holding out hope that she will be found and she is ok. I am heartbroken and lost right now but I have to have faith... please give us time to work through this and please keep us in your thoughts and prayers.'
Two days later, West Virginia State Police executed a search warrant and found Wheeler cowering in in a closet of her home, reported WTRF.
Rodney told police Julie had toppled from the cliff while trying to search for a missing earring. He searched a post asking people to 'pray' that she would be found
Two days later, State Police found Julie cowering in a closet at home in Beaver, West Virginia
Wheeler was sentenced in June to 42 months in prison for health care fraud related to overbilling and ordered to pay more than $289,000 in restitution, authorities said.
She pleaded guilty to the health care fraud charge on February 11 and admitted to submitting fraudulent applications to the VA Spina Bifida Health Care Benefits Program where she overbilled for providing spina bifida care for a family member.
Wheeler's husband is expected to go on trial in the case on November 17.
The Wheelers are both charged with numerous felony and misdemeanor offenses in Raleigh County Circuit and Magistrate Courts relating to the false reporting of an emergency.
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