Balelo reportedly killed himself by carbon monoxide poisoning only two days after he was arrested for a drug-related offense.
- Feb 12, 2013
AceShowbiz - Tragic news has come from the "Storage Wars" family. One of its stars, Mark Balelo, was found dead at his Simi Valley, California auction house on Monday, February 11 reportedly after committing suicide. He was 40.
Balelo, according to TMZ, decided to end his life by carbon monoxide poisoning. Sources said that he was in his car when his dead body was found. The vehicle was parked in the garage of his home and the motor was running.
Following the tragedy, Ventura County Medical Examiner's Office stated that it wouldn't reveal any details on Balelo's death before the autopsy is held on Tuesday. The bad news itself came as a shock shortly after Balelo got arrested for a drug-related offense over the weekend.
Words are, Balelo was distraught when he got out of jail. He reportedly pleaded her fiancee to accompany him because he was afraid he might hurt himself. The couple met at his office on Sunday, and after chatting for a few hours, he took a four-hour nap and seemed to get better when he woke up.
Balelo's fiancee then left the office on Sunday evening. However, on Monday morning, his employees discovered his lifeless body. Balelo was originally scheduled to appear in court on February 19.
Known for his appearances on a number of "Storage Wars" episodes over the few seasons, Balelo made headlines in 2011 when he helped Nicolas Cage recover a mint-condition copy of a first-ever Superman comic book. The comic had been stolen and eventually discovered in a storage locker ten years later.
As for his stint on "Storage Wars", Balelo was known for always making other bidders mad by showing up with large amounts of money and easily outbidding all his rivals.
