Auction House owner Mark Balelo, of ‘Storage Wars’ fame, reportedly committed suicide in Simi Valley, California on Monday, Feb. 11, 2013.
The 40-year-old was involved in inventory liquidation and was known to bring large sums of money to auctions, appearing on multiple episodes of the A&E reality show ‘Storage Wars.’
He had a tendency to dress in fancy clothes while bidding at auctions, earning him the nickname ‘Rico Suave.’
Balelo was arrested over the weekend and charged with possession of a controlled substance. Reportedly distraught after being released from jail, he was found dead of carbon monoxide poisoning inside his car that was left running and parked inside a garage at his auction house facility.
According to his fiancee, he was concerned on Sunday that he might harm himself but seemed better when she left him later that evening. His body was discovered on Monday morning by an employee at the auction house.
An autopsy and toxicology screening were expected to be conducted on Tuesday to determine cause and manner of death, standard procedure in this type of case.
Photo: Facebook-Mark Balelo
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