White supremacist found dead before start of trial
A self-professed white nationalist and tiki-torcher from the 2017 Charlottesville rally took his own life the day his federal case for transporting fentanyl through Arizona was scheduled to start.
Teddy Joseph Von Nukem, 35, was facing charges of transporting about 30 pounds of fentanyl pills into the U.S.Mexico border. On Jan. 30, his wife found his body along with a suicide note, according to a coroner’s report out of Texas County in Missouri.
Von Nukem, who changed his name from Landrum in homage to a video game character, had been an outspoken white supremacist who gained notoriety after having his photo taken on Aug. 11, 2017, at the “Unite the Right” Charlottesville rally, which turned violent and led to the death of one woman and injuries
to 35.
Customs and Border Protection officers stopped Von Nukem at the Lukeville port of entry in Arizona after getting a lookout alert for Von Nukem and his car. Dogs alerted the officers to a smell coming from the vehicle. They found bags of fentanyl pills, estimated to be worth over $300,000, according to court records submitted by federal prosecutors.
Von Nukem said in court records that he had been in contact with a man named “Victor,” who had hidden the drugs in his car.
According to U.S. Attorneys, Von Nukem admitted in an interview with law enforcement investigators that “he was paid $4,000 to smuggle the contraband.”
The government seized Von Nukem’s car, Mexican pesos and U.S. currency.
According to court records, it is unclear where Von Nukem had been driving from in Mexico, but his five children and wife were in Yucatan, Mexico, when he was arrested.
Von Nukem, born in Phoenix, was indicted on one count of conspiracy to distribute fentanyl, one count of possession with intent to distribute, one count of conspiracy to import fentanyl and one count of importation of fentanyl which could have carried a minimum of 24 years in prison.
In court documents, Von Nukem claimed to have money problems.
He was released to his rural home in Missouri while he waited for his trial to begin.
On the first day of the trial, Von Nukem skipped court. His wife last saw him loading the furnace, and when she went out to look for him, she found him with a gunshot wound to the chest, according to the coroner’s report.
“Suicide notes were found at the scene, left for law enforcement and his children, however handwriting was somewhat inconsistent,” the coroner’s report read.
His case was dismissed on Feb. 10.