A private investigator hired by Tyler Wilkin’s friends says he is examining three people and new circumstances surrounding the remote beach crime scene.
LUQUILLO, PUERTO RICO — Seven weeks after Ohio native Tyler Wilkin was fatally shot near a secluded Puerto Rico beach, a private investigator hired by his friends says his inquiry has focused on three people and raised new questions about a wildlife camera that disappeared after the killing.
The new findings do not establish who killed Wilkin, 35, or why. Puerto Rico police have publicly said they have a person of interest in the homicide, and the FBI has been assisting the investigation. No arrest has been announced. Private investigator Fernando Fernandez said he provides information he develops to Puerto Rico police as the parallel inquiry continues.
Wilkin, who had moved from Ohio to San Juan in 2024, was camping near Playa La Selva in Luquillo before he was killed. Accounts of the exact timeline have differed. Local 12 reported this week that Wilkin’s last message to his girlfriend came around 2 a.m. on July 8 and that a person walking along the beach found him about four hours later. Earlier reporting from Puerto Rico, including El Nuevo Día, placed the discovery of his body on July 10. Authorities have said he suffered a gunshot wound to the head.
Fernandez told Local 12 that his investigation brought him back to the remote area where Wilkin was found, several minutes by foot from his campsite. Based on the body and other information reviewed by his team, Fernandez said he believes Wilkin was standing when he was shot from behind. That differs from an earlier account that suggested Wilkin had been kneeling. Police have not publicly confirmed Fernandez’s reconstruction.
The private investigator also learned that environmentalists had placed cameras in the area because it is a sea turtle habitat. Fernandez said one camera was present around the time of the killing but was not operating because its batteries had died. He said the camera was later serviced, then apparently torn down one or two weeks afterward. Fernandez believes the person responsible for Wilkin’s death may have returned to remove it, but that theory has not been confirmed by police and there is no publicly released evidence identifying who took the camera.
Fernandez also told Local 12 that investigators are considering whether activity involving boats near the isolated shoreline could have played a role. He said information gathered during his inquiry suggested boats periodically approached the area, and he raised the possibility that Wilkin encountered something while camping there. The claim remains a theory from the private investigation. Puerto Rico police previously said they did not have a clear theory explaining the homicide, and officials have not publicly established a motive or tied Wilkin’s death to drug trafficking.
Through interviews and observations, Fernandez said his inquiry has narrowed its attention to three people. One is a person he wants to interview about what that individual may know, while the other two are a couple who were reportedly seen passing through the area multiple times. Fernandez initially used the word “suspect” during his interview with Local 12 but corrected himself and described the individual as a person of interest. There has been no public accusation that any of the three committed a crime.
Puerto Rico Police Superintendent Joseph González said in late July that authorities separately had identified a person of interest and that the FBI was providing technical assistance. González stressed that the individual was not being publicly characterized as a suspect. At an Aug. 4 news conference, he said he did not believe there was additional information he could release and described the Wilkin investigation as a priority. Authorities have not publicly said whether the person referenced by police is the same individual Fernandez is examining.
Wilkin’s friends raised money to hire the private investigator after weeks of uncertainty surrounding the case. Local 12 reported that the fundraising effort reached its $30,000 goal and that Fernandez was retained about three weeks before his latest interview. His team has since distributed flyers in Puerto Rico and online in an effort to generate additional information. Wilkin’s family traveled to Puerto Rico after his death and later held a celebration of life in Ohio.
The homicide remains unsolved. Police have not announced charges, identified a confirmed motive or publicly named the person of interest. Fernandez said he continues to forward leads to authorities while pursuing the independent investigation, leaving several elements of Wilkin’s final hours — including who was near the beach and what led him away from his campsite — unresolved.
Author note: Last updated August 27, 2026.