Dog the Bounty Hunter Duane Chapman Says 'Beth Isn't Dead, She's Sleeping' in Tearful Message

Dog the Bounty Hunter star Duane "Dog" Chapman is mourning the loss of his wife, Beth Chapman, after she "hiked the stairway to heaven" on Wednesday, June 26 at the age of 51. Hours after announcing his wife's passing following a years-long battle with throat cancer, Chapman, along with his two daughters, spoke to reporters with Hawaii News Now outside his Honolulu, Hawaii home, revealing that he is turning to religion to help him cope with the loss.

"I loved her so much," he said. "As Lazarus lay, Jesus said he's not dead, he's sleepeth. My final words are Beth isn't dead, she's sleeping."

"I hope to god there is a God. I trained myself [to think] 'What would Jesus do?' and I hope I'm not just talking to myself," he added. "I hope there is a God and if there is, I'm gonna see my honey again. That's all we can do is hope."

Beth's passing came just days after she had been placed in a medically-induced coma in the intensive care unit at Hawaii's Queen's Medical Center following a "choking incident" at her home. She had been diagnosed with cancer months before, doctors informing her that after having initially been declared cancer-free in 2017, the cancer had returned and spread to other parts of her body.

Beth, who had declared that her fight was the "ultimate test of faith," had held her faith close in her final days, her husband revealed.

"One of the last things she said [was] 'It's a test of my faith,'" he told reporters. "She had faith and that was it. There's things you go through when you're dying, like steps like you do when you lose someone, right? You get mad at them, and then you go through all these steps."

"Well, the last step when you're dying is to accept it," he added. "And she said to me the other day, 'Honey, that last step, I ain't taking…'So go Bethy."

Beth's battle with cancer came to an end on Wednesday, June 26, with her husband announcing on Twitter just before noon eastern that she had "hiked the stairway to heaven" and promising to see her "on the other side."

As fans flocked to social media to pay their respects and send their condolences, the Chapman family honored their late family member by setting up a memorial outside of their Hawaii home, complete with an easel holding a photo of Beth and a car covered in flowers. The family is urging fans mourning her loss to leave flowers in honor of the late star.

Beth is survived by her husband and their four children: Cecily Chapman, Bonnie Chapman, Garry Chapman, and Dominic Davis.