Did Andrew Getty Really Die From Natural Causes?
Andrew Getty, grandson of billionaire oil tycoon J. Paul Getty, who founded Getty Oil, passed away in his Hollywood Hills home earlier this week. Getty was found on the bathroom floor, nude from the waist down, in a pool of blood. Though initial reports were vague regarding the cause of death, Los Angeles police stated Andrew likely passed from natural causes, citing a history of medical problems, as well as drug abuse and domestic violence involving his ex-girlfriend, now identified as Lanessa De Jonge.
According to the Daily Mail, Lanessa’s mother claims that Andrew Getty had recently been diagnosed with a brain aneurysm and hadn’t been eating, sleeping, or feeling well for the days before he passed. The Daily Mail further quoted a long time friend of Andrew Getty who said the oil heir blamed cocaine for problems he was having with constipation, as well as bloody diarrhea.
“Andrew was a great guy but massive partier and that’s well known. He took drugs to such an excess that I wouldn’t be surprised if his heart just gave out. He was having stomach problems, but it was bowel problems. The blow [cocaine] was giving him irritable bowls so he’d go from painful constipation to bloody diarrhea. He was complaining about blood in his stool, so he’d had that for a while. He blamed it on the coke use, actually. But Andrew mixed drugs so often and so much that I’m not sure how he can sort out which drug was doing which bit of damage to his body.”
This information makes a compelling argument toward the scenario that Andrew Getty did pass from natural causes if excessive drug abuse may be deemed “natural.” It may also explain the reason Getty was undressed from the waist down and surrounded by blood. It does not, however, address the issue of the “traumatic injury to the rectal area” which appears to have been caused by blunt-force trauma, as reported by the Mirrorand countless other news sites.
Commander Andrew Smith, the spokesperson for the Los Angeles Police Department, said the Andrew Getty case is not at first thought to be criminal.
“At first glance, it does not appear to be a criminal type of act. But that could change. The tentative information that we do have is that he was not feeling good for the last couple of months and he supposedly had an appointment with a personal physician. He had some medication that we recovered and don’t know if he had taken the medication or what his medical history is. We do have a doctor’s name that we’re also going to follow up.”
A couple weeks before his death, Andrew Getty procured a restraining order against his ex-girlfriend, Lanessa De Jonge. The couple has a long history of domestic disputes, at least 30 of which have resulted in the assistance of LAPD officers. The Los Angeles Times reports that the court records filled out by Andrew Getty requesting the restraining order detailed ways De Jonge exacerbated his medical condition for her own benefit.
“…[Lanessa] exploited this information to demand money and property from me, refusing to leave my house. As she was aware, I have a serious medical condition and if my blood pressure rises I am at serious risk of injury or death.”
Despite the restraining order, De Jonge was present at the time of Andrew’s death. Police do not believe she is a person of interest. Official results regarding the cause of death for Andrew Getty is pending an autopsy. Do you think Andrew Getty caused his own medical problems, or did his ex-girlfriend torment him to death? Or perhaps the passing of Andrew Getty was simply an accident?
[Image via CNBC]
