On what was meant to be the opening day of his drug trafficking trial, a renowned Neo-Nazi who participated in the historic Charlottesville demonstration in 2017 shot himself to death.
On January 30, his wife discovered the body of Teddy Joseph Von Nukem, a 35-year-old father of five small children, outside their home in Rolla, Missouri.
In March 2021, he was accused of smuggling 15 kg of fentanyl pills into the United States from Mexico in his automobile. On that day, he was scheduled to appear in court in Arizona on charges of drug smuggling.
Von Nukem acknowledged receiving $215 for transporting the drugs.
Von Nukem changed his name from Teddy Landrum to Von Nukem in 2012 as a reference to his German origin and the video game character Duke Nukem, which he got interested in during his high school years.
He traveled to Virginia for the 2017 Unite the Right rally, which shook the nation, and was among the white nationalists holding tiki torches and yelling “Jews will not replace us” as they marched through the city.
Heather Heyer, 32, was intentionally mowed down and killed during the rally on August 11-12, and the then-president, Donald Trump, provoked anger by claiming that there were “good people on both sides” at the rally.
The Daily Beast said that Von Nukem was among a group of white nationalists who beat Deandre Harris nearly to death.
At the time of the event, he told The Springfield News-Leader that he backed Trump and had acquired the white nationalist perspective that whites are currently ‘disadvantaged.’
He stated, “I have no problem showing solidarity with them.”
You must choose your side. You must rally behind the army that is fighting on your behalf.
He said that his wife, who did not attend the Charlottesville event, was more extreme and more conservative than he was.
“Politics is a form of violence. Period. The end of the narrative. And women should not participate in violence,’ he added.
They should leave violence to those who are best at it, which are men.
If something were to happen to me, that would be quite unfortunate. But if something happened to both of us, it would be disastrous for our children.’
After Von Nukem failed to appear in court on January 30, U.S. District Judge Rosemary Marquez issued an arrest warrant for him.
Almost simultaneously, Von Nukem’s wife discovered his warm body in the snow outside their home and phoned the police.
The coroner’s report, obtained by The Daily Beast, adds, “Suicide notes were discovered at the scene, addressed to law enforcement and his children, but the handwriting was inconsistent.”
His obituary stated that he was “a unique individual.”
His relatives commented, “Some people knew Ted and understood he was a different type of person with different perspectives on things, but he would give you the shirt off his back if you asked or needed it.”
He will be deeply missed and cherished. May he continue to watch over his friends and family for all eternity.