The Rey Rivera Unsolved Mysteries Helicopter Theory Explained

Viewers of Unsolved Mysteries who saw the episode on Rey Rivera might have wondered if there was an entirely different theory about how he died. Enter the helicopter theory, which wasn't included in the Netflix series but was mentioned in a recently released clip.

Rivera was a writer who worked for the investment firm of Stansberry and Associates, headed by his friend Porter Stansberry, reports Newsweek. Rivera was a newlywed who had moved to Baltimore from California with his wife. But in 2006, after he was reported missing, he was found dead inside an unused conference room in the Belvedere Hotel in Baltimore. His car was found parked near the hotel, so friends were on rooftops looking for any sign of him, writes Cheat Sheet. They then spotted a hole in the roof of the Belevedere — a body-sized hole. The hole in the roof through which he plunged indicated he might have jumped from a higher point — the hotel had mansard roofs in addition to flat roofs — but his glasses and his phone were found undamaged behind his body. Despite mysterious circumstances, the police ruled his death a suicide, based on a note Rivera's wife discovered.

The helicopter theory posits that Rivera might have been dropped, or possibly fell off, a helicopter. He then possibly dropped through the roof of the hotel Into the unused room. Helicopters do fly around the hotel, reports Screen Rant.

But the police, and other independent investigators, dismissed the helicopter theory. According to Screen Rant, people living in the hotel and the neighborhood would have certainly heard both the helicopter and the body hitting the roof. The way Rivera's body was found showed he took a running start from a lower height, per Cheat Sheet, based on a physicist consulted by independent investigators.

The helicopter theory has some flaws, investigators told Cheat Sheet. The Belvedere is located in a city so it would be almost impossible to hover that low in a busy area. If a body was dropped higher than building level, it could've landed anywhere.

The helicopter theory is only one of the possible hypotheses about Rivera's death. Radio Times writes the crime scene could've been staged especially with the rooftop cameras being disconnected. Either way, his death is officially a suicide, unless new evidence crops up and it becomes one of the few mysteries that gets solved.