Andrew Getty, Heir To One Of Richest American Families, Found Dead In Bathroom

Andrew Getty passed away at a Hollywood Hills home on Tuesday. The family of one of the heirs to one of the richest American families in history said that the cause of death might have been from natural causes.

Los Angeles County coroner's Assistant Chief Ed Winter, on the other hand, said that it was initially thought that Getty had died of an accident because medication was discovered at the scene. Winter said that Andrew seemed to have died of natural causes while coroner’s officials would have to wait for the results of toxicology tests and further examinations. The entire process may take up to 10 weeks.

Winter said that Andrew was not feeling well recently. "The tentative information that we do have is that he was not feeling good for the last couple months," he said, "and he supposedly had an appointment tomorrow with a personal physician."

Andrew was found in the bathroom of his Los Angeles home at around 2 p.m. It was his former girlfriend who called 911 to report cardiac arrest.

TMZ reports that the grandson of J. Paul Getty suffered a traumatic injury to the rectal area. It also reports that paramedics found significant bleeding. Andrew’s ex-girlfriend was detained as a probable connection to the death. Police said that the case was being handled as a death "under suspicious circumstances."

According to reports, Andrew and his former girlfriend have a detailed history with the Los Angeles Police Department. LAPD officers visited their home 31 times. Most of the times, they visited Andrew’s resident in connection to domestic disturbances. Both Andrew and his girlfriend were under the influence of drugs when the officers visited them.

Andrew’s girlfriend, who was believed to have been interrogated as the prime witness or suspect to the death, apparently has a restraining order against her. She reportedly injured police officers when they responded to the house. Later, she was placed under a 5150 psychiatric hold. Reports also suggest that she allegedly broke into Getty’s house on several occasions.

Andrew is one of the four sons of Gordon Getty. The San Francisco multibillionaire is one of the richest men in the United States.

Contact the writer: s.mukhopadhyay@ibtimes.com.au