Inside the Mysterious Death of Robert Wone. Who Killed Robert Wone?

The Beginning

Robert Eric Wone was a 32-year-old fourth-generation Chinese American who was born in Manhattan and raised in Brooklyn, New York. He excelled academically and attended the College of William & Mary as a James Monroe Scholar, where he met Joseph Price. They were involved in various activities together, and Wone graduated from William & Mary in 1996.

He went on to earn a Juris Doctor degree with honors from the University of Pennsylvania Law School in 1999.

Later, Wone worked as an attorney specializing in commercial real estate law at the law firm Covington & Burling in Washington, D.C. He also served as general counsel for the Organization of Chinese Americans (OCA).

In 2003, he married Katherine Ellen Yu, and they lived in Fairfax County, Virginia. In June 2006, Wone left Covington & Burling to become the general counsel for Radio Free Asia.

Wone was actively involved in the Asian American community and supported organizations such as OCA and the Museum of Chinese in America. He was also the president-elect of the Asian-Pacific American Bar Association at the time of his death.

The Crime

On August 2, 2006, Robert Eric Wone was fatally stabbed while staying overnight at a house owned by Joseph Price and Victor Zaborsky, where they lived with Dylan Ward as a polyamorous family.

Wone chose to spend the night because he didn't want to disturb his wife, Katherine, by returning home late after working a late shift at his job, Radio Free Asia. Sometime in the night, neighbors heard a scream, later identified as Zaborsky's. According to reports, Wone had arrived at the residence around 10:30 p.m., and at 11:49 p.m., Zaborsky called 911 to report that Wone had been stabbed.

Paramedics arrived shortly following Zaborsky's call, followed by the police. Wone was taken to George Washington University Hospital where he was pronounced dead. Price, Zaborsky, and Ward initially spoke with the police and denied any involvement in Wone's death, suggesting that an unknown intruder was responsible.

They also denied having a sexual relationship with Wone.

Paramedics who responded to the emergency call regarding Robert Eric Wone's death found the behavior of the three residents of the house unusual. They were calm and not actively assisting the paramedics. The housemates, including Dylan Ward, were interrogated by detectives on the night of the killing, who informed them that they were the main suspects in the case.

It was publicly revealed two weeks later that the crime scene had been tampered with.

In the aftermath of Robert Wone's death, there were frustrations with the FBI crime lab's slow analysis of the evidence. The case had been transferred to multiple prosecutors, causing delays and criticism.

Despite their relentless pursuit for answers, investigators couldn't find a positive lead that would guide them to crack the case. The question of who murdered Wone remained unanswered.

Wone's widow hired an attorney to pursue the case and made a public appeal for assistance in finding the killer. Eventually, Ward was charged with obstruction of justice, followed by Price and Zaborsky. Additional charges of conspiracy were filed against them, and it was alleged that they had obstructed justice and tampered with the crime scene. The arrest warrant affidavit stated that Wone had been restrained, sexually assaulted, and murdered in the house. The accused men denied the allegations.

There were suspicions that evidence had been planted and manipulated, including the placement of a knife and the washing of clothes. During the trial, it was revealed that emails had been drafted on Wone's BlackBerry after his presumed time of death.

The defense argued that this supported the claim of a quick intruder attack rather than a prolonged assault. In the end, the three defendants were found not guilty of conspiracy, obstruction of justice, and tampering with evidence. The judge stated her personal belief that the men knew who killed Wone but couldn't prove their guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

Autopsy Report

The autopsy reveals that the heart, coronary artery, and inferior vena cava were perforated by stab wounds.

Wone had multiple needle puncture marks on his body, including his neck, chest, and foot. Additionally, there was evidence suggesting an attempt at suffocation, but notably, Wone had no defensive wounds, indicating he likely did not resist while being stabbed.

This lack of defensive wounds, along with the needle marks, has led to speculation that Wone was incapacitated at the time of the attack.

The three friends Wone had been staying with claimed an intruder broke in and killed him — but there was no sign of forced entry. What's more, an intruder would have had to climb an eight-foot fence in the backyard, walk up the steps to the second floor, pass by another bedroom, enter the room Wone was staying, inject drugs into his system, sexually assault him, attempt to suffocate him, and finally stab him three times with a knife, all without the house's residents noticing anything.

To date, investigators have not cracked this case, and no one has been arrested for the murder of Wone.

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