Gaudreau tragedy rocked again by new twist in leak scandal

A shocking development has emerged in the aftermath of the tragic deaths of Johnny Gaudreau and his brother Matthew Gaudreau, and it’s raising renewed questions about privacy and accountability.

According to reports from the Courier Post, a former morgue employee in New Jersey who was fired for leaking sensitive details about the case will not be getting his job back. Connor McGlynn, 34, had appealed his dismissal, but the decision has now been upheld.

McGlynn admitted to sharing confidential information with friends on the very night of the brothers’ deaths in August 2024. At the time, Johnny, then a star with the Columbus Blue Jackets, and Matthew were cycling near their sister’s home in New Jersey when they were fatally struck by an alleged drunk driver. The accused, Sean Higgins, is still awaiting trial on charges that include aggravated manslaughter and reckless vehicular homicide.

Just hours after the accident, a photo of handwritten notes began circulating on social media platforms, including X and Reddit. The notes contained highly sensitive details, birthdates, home addresses, and specifics about the incident, that were never meant to be made public.

Although the names of the victims were not directly listed, the information was enough for online users to connect the dots. Screenshots also revealed a group chat involving eight individuals, including McGlynn, where the details had been shared. The leak even included the phone number of a responding police officer, who reportedly received multiple calls that night from people seeking more information.

“Due to the celebrity status of the victims, the social media post resulted in both the officer and the State Police receiving several phone calls from the media,” the commission’s decision explained.

The commission’s hearing shortly after the U.S. men’s hockey team paid an emotional tribute to Johnny Gaudreau following their gold medal victory at the Milan Olympics at the end of last month.

McGlynn was officially terminated in September 2024 for violating a confidentiality agreement. And that’s the way it should be: I mean no details of a private tragedy should be exposed, and if they are, like in this incident, consequences need to be serious.