Wheel of Fortune announcer Jim Thornton update: Witness who claims to have seen star in 'pedophilia' chatroom has still not been contacted by FBI

The FBI has reportedly not yet contacted the woman who claimed to have witnessed Wheel of Fortune announcer Jim Thornton in an alleged 'pedophilia' chatroom, despite an LAPD officer telling her the agency would be in touch. 

In May, Thornton, 61, appeared to be browsing Lifeline.chat, a website intended for people experiencing pedophilic thoughts, in photos taken by a passenger during an American Airlines flight from North Carolina and Los Angeles.

Law enforcement were subsequently summoned and questioned Thornton once the plane landed, and a lawyer for the announcer said his client 'did not engage in any illegal conduct, was not arrested, and has not been charged with any crime.'

But the passenger who took the photos has yet to hear from the FBI, according to TMZ.

Sources told the publication that the passenger provided a full statement to an LAPD officer, who told her the information she shared would be sent to the FBI.

Yet sources say the witness was never contacted by the agency.

The website also reports Thornton was briefly questioned by the authorities and left without receiving any charges or being arrested.

A representative for the FBI told TMZ on Friday: 'The FBI does not, as a matter of policy, confirm or deny the existence of investigations.'

The Daily Mail has contacted Thornton and representatives for the FBI, Wheel of Fortune, Sony, and American Airlines for comment. The LAPD referred The Daily Mail to the FBI when approached for comment. 

In May, Thornton was captured looking at an alleged 'pedophilia' chatroom while on an airplane, leading to his suspension from the show.

Thornton was pictured looking at a laptop screen during the flight in images taken by a fellow passenger and obtained by TMZ.

A close-up of the computer screen shows disturbing messages, including one participant describing a restaurant as 'a nice hangout for kids', and mentioning a 'couple of cute boys and a hot little girl.'

Another unsettling message reads, 'All-you-can-eat Boyffet.' There is also a message referencing 'CP' which the passenger who took the photos believed to be short for 'child pornography.'

From the timestamps on the photos – which show Thornton wearing a Wheel of Fortune jacket – it appears he was in the chatroom for at least 57 minutes.

Thornton's lawyer, Allison Hart, told TMZ that the voice actor entered the site by mistake.

Hart said that Thornton had 'become active in suicide-prevention advocacy since losing a close family member to suicide two years ago, and he has spent time visiting chat rooms offering support to individuals suffering from suicidal ideation.'

Hart said that Thornton often visited a suicide prevention website named 988lifeline.org and its chat forum, chat.988lifeline.org.

Thornton claims he was sent a link to a different chatroom, lifeline.chat, by an acquaintance from the suicide prevention group. The site is intended for people experiencing pedophilic thoughts.

Thornton claims he left the chatroom after realizing what it was.

His lawyer added that the website he visited is 'not unlawful, there is no unlawful child pornography or other pedophilic content, and my client never viewed, downloaded or consumed any child pornography whether on that commercial flight in May or at any other time.'

Hart said that the announcer 'did not engage in any illegal conduct, was not arrested, and has not been charged with any crime.'

The attorney claimed: 'When questioned about the complaint made by a fellow passenger on the flight, law enforcement spoke to him for five minutes or less, immediately determined that no wrongdoing had occurred and told my client he was free to go.'

Thornton has since been terminated from Wheel of Fortune following an initial suspension. 

'Following a thorough investigation, Jim Thornton’s employment with Wheel of Fortune has been terminated, effective immediately,' a representative for Sony Pictures told the Daily Mail. 

Sony first suspended Thornton over 'allegations' but did not indicate what the accusations were. TMZ reported he was suspended over the images.  

In a statement to the Daily Mail, American Airlines said of the incident: 'On May 14, American Airlines Flight 1276 was met by law enforcement upon arrival at Los Angeles International Airport following concerns reported by a customer onboard.'

Amid his suspension, Thornton appeared on a pre-taped episode of Wheel of Fortune.

His tenure with the show began in 2011, when he replaced former announcer Charlie O'Donnell after his death in November 2010 at 78.

Thornton is rarely seen on the show, which is currently hosted by Vanna White and Ryan Seacrest.

Thornton is rarely seen on the show, which is hosted by Vanna White and Ryan Seacrest.

However, TMZ noted that in 2023 he filled in for then-host Pat Sajak to host a round of the competition because a contestant was hoping to meet him.

Thornton had a brief stint as an announcer on The Price Is Right in 2004.

He's also done voice work in Disney-Pixar's film Monsters, Inc and the video game adaptation of Wall-E.

The live-action announcer is best known for appearing on the animated comedy The Cleveland Show and MTV's Celebrity Deathmatch.

Outside of his work as a live-action announcer, Thornton is best known for appearing on the animated comedy The Cleveland Show and MTV's Celebrity Deathmatch.

He appeared in the main cast role on the Celebrity Deathmatch revival, which aired for two seasons from 2006 to 2007, after the original cult series was on the air from 1998 to 2002.

Each episode of the stop-motion animation comedy series featured gruesome wrestling matches between celebrities that ended with one of them dying in comically over-the-top manners.

Thornton voiced one of the wrestling announcers and commentators, Johnny Gomez, which represented his most significant acting work to date.