This article discusses suicide and suicidal ideation. If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, help is available. Call or text 988 or chat at 988lifeline.org.
Less than a month after Darrell Sheets was found dead in his western Arizona home, a cause of death has been released for the reality TV star.
Sheets, who appeared in over 100 episodes of the A&E series "Storage Wars," died by suicide, a spokesperson for the Mohave County Medical Examiner's Office confirmed to USA TODAY on Tuesday, May 5. No additional details were available.
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After the finding was released, the Lake Havasu City Police Department released a statement confirming it was notified of Sheets' death being "ruled a suicide, pending the completion of toxicology results." The agency "continues to actively investigate allegations of cyberbullying associated with this case," the statement added.
"The Criminal Investigations Unit has submitted Darrell Sheets’ cellular phone for forensic analysis and is currently awaiting the results," according to the statement. "This investigative step is essential to advancing the case. Additional information will be released as it becomes available."
The day Sheets was discovered, "Storage Wars" costar Rene Nezhoda alleged Sheets "had a guy really, really tormenting him lately and cyberbullying" him.
Anyone with information about the incident has been urged to call Lake Havasu City police at 928-855-1171.
These developments come two weeks after authorities found Sheets dead from what appeared to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound at his home around 2 a.m. on April 22, the Lake Havasu City Police Department said in a press release at the time.
Before moving to Lake Havasu City, Sheets was born in California in 1958 and rose to TV fame through his starring role on "Storage Wars," a series that follows buyers of abandoned and unopened storage lockers competing to obtain valuable contents in Southern California. He earned the nickname "The Gambler" due to his appetite for high-risk purchases during auctions.
He loved the "high" of storage auctions for 32 years, according to a biography featured on the "Storage Wars" website. "The only thing I collect these days is dead presidents," Sheets previously said of his business career.
Sheets only sporadically appeared on the show's later seasons after he revealed he suffered a heart attack in 2019. Upon leaving the locker trade industry, he moved to Arizona and owned an antiques store.
In a statement to USA TODAY at the time of Sheets' death, A&E said the network was "saddened by the passing of a beloved member of our 'Storage Wars' family, Darrell 'The Gambler' Sheets," adding, "Our thoughts are with his family and loved ones during this difficult time."
Contributing: KiMi Robinson
(This story was updated to include new information.)
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 'Storage Wars' star Darrell Sheets' cause of death revealed
