Late ‘Deadliest Catch’ Captain Blake Painter Reportedly Had Drugs Near His Body, Police Say

Late Deadliest Catch star Blake Painter had a variety of drugs surrounding his body when police discovered him more than two weeks ago, according to an incident report. He had reportedly been dead for several days.

TMZ reports that according to the incident report from Oregon’s Clatsop County Sheriff’s Office, a friend and former Deadliest Catch captain alerted police when he saw Painter lying on the floor of his living room through a window.

The responding officer reportedly said that he could smell “the odor of decaying flesh” when he discovered Painter lying on his side. Painter’s face, back and stomach were reportedly blue.

In the report, a bottle of the painkiller Tramadol was on the couch next to Painter’s body, along with another bottle with an assortment of pills. The news outlet reports that there was also a pipe, foil and an Altoids tin containing what police say were heroin and meth. Later, the medical examiner found a small pipe in Painter’s shorts.

As previously reported, Painter’s body was found by police on Friday, May 25 after a friend grew concerned about Painter’s well being after not hearing from the reality TV personality for some time. The friend reportedly had been trying to reach Painter since Monday, May 21. Painter had reportedly been “sober and happy’ in the days prior to his death, having even taken his daughters swimming on Sunday, May 20.

No foul play was suspected in Painter’s death, but another Deadliest Catch star wrote on Twitter that a “fellow fisherman” had died after an overdose. Painter was captain of the F/V Maverick on seasons 1 and 2 of Deadliest Catch before leaving the Discovery Channel show in season 3. The show chronicles the lives and work of fishermen in Alaska waters, with an eye to the hazards of the profession. The show has won 16 Emmys.

Nick McGlashan, a deck boss on the show who has also struggled with opioid addiction, wrote on Twitter about a “fellow fisherman” who “lost his life due to an overdose,” later identifying the person as “former crabber from the [Deadliest Catch] family. Many speculated that person is Painter.

An official cause of death will be released pending an autopsy and toxicology test. According to The Daily Astorian, Painter was arrested earlier this year after allegedly smoking heroin while driving.

Painter is not the only Deadliest Catch star to die young. In 2015, Tony Lara died at the age of 50 from a heart attack and in 2010, fishing boat captain Phil Harris died of a stroke at 53.