Cocaine a factor in the death of Billy Mays
TV pitchman Bill Mays took cocaine just days before his death, contributing to his fatal heart attack, according to an autopsy.
Mays, 50, the bearded man with the booming voice best known for his ubiquitous OxiClean ads, was found dead June 28 in his Florida home.
“From the presence of metabolites of cocaine and the absence of cocaine itself, it was concluded that Mr. Mays used cocaine in the few days prior to his death but not immediately prior to death,” says a statement from the Hillsborough County, Fla., medical examiner. “Cocaine can raise the arterial blood pressure, directly cause thickening of the wall of the left ventricle of the heart, and accelerate the formation of atherosclerosis in the coronary arteries.”
Mays was pronounced dead after his body was found in his bed by wife Deborah Mays. Early speculation focused on a bump to his head during a rough landing of a flight the day before into Tampa. But the coroner had found no sign of head trauma.
