Ex-Pentagon officials body found in trash

A US military expert who served three Republican presidents and helped get the Vietnam Veterans Memorial built as part of his dedication to those who fought in that war was found dead in a landfill

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A US military expert who served three Republican presidents and helped get the Vietnam Veterans Memorial built as part of his dedication to those who fought in that war was found dead in a landfill,and authorities were trying to piece together when he was last seen alive.

The body of John Wheeler II,66,was uncovered Friday when a garbage truck emptied its contents at a landfill after collecting the trash from about 10 commercial disposal bins in Newark,several miles from Wheelers home in the historic district of New Castle,but the police said they arent sure which container his body came from.

Friends said they traded e-mails with Wheeler who had not been reported missing around Christmas. Wheeler also had been scheduled to take an Amtrak train from Washington to Wilmington on December 28,but its not clear if he ever made the trip,said investigators,who have labeled Wheelers death a homicide.

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Family members may not have reported him missing because they were out of town,Newark police spokesman Lt Mark Farrall said.

As you must appreciate,this is a tragic time for the family. We are grieving our loss. Please understand that the family has no further comment at this time. We trust that everyone will respect the familys privacy, a statement by the family said.

Wheeler followed in his decorated fathers footsteps and attended the US Military Academy at West Point. After graduating in 1966,in the midst of the Vietnam War,he served five years in the Army,including as a staff officer at the Pentagon,and retired from the military in 1971. In later years,Wheeler,as special assistant to the Secretary of the Air Force at the Pentagon during the George W Bush administration,helped develop the Air Force Cyber Command.

Wheeler spent much of his post-Army career in Washington,DC. For eight years from 1978 to 1986,he was special counsel to the chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission. During those years,he also created the Vietnam Veterans Leadership Programme for president Ronald Reagan.