The Lafourche Parish Sheriff’s Office confirmed that Kenan “Ken” Urker, Gypsy Rose Blanchard’s partner, was found dead inside his Louisiana home Thursday after family members and friends requested a welfare check.
According to an incident report, Anita Blanchard told authorities that she and her husband—Gypsy Rose Blanchard’s half-brother—went to Urker’s home and saw the 34-year-old lying unconscious through a window.
A man who accompanied the couple entered the residence through a window and found Urker unresponsive, not breathing and cold to the touch, the report stated.
Gypsy Rose Blanchard attends “The Prison Confessions of Gypsy Rose Blanchard” red carpet event on Jan. 5, 2024, in New York City. On Thursday, authorities found Blacnchard’s partner, Kenan “Ken” Urker, dead in his Louisiana home. (Getty Images)
Investigators found syringes and a spoon near a brown, powdery substance in the bathroom. A handgun, two shot glasses and another syringe were also located on a nightstand beside the bed, according to the report.
Deputies wrote that Urker “appeared to have been there for an extended period of time.”
Anita Blanchard told investigators that Urker had attended church with her and her husband the previous evening at about 8:45 p.m. During the visit, he reportedly said he was feeling depressed and upset.
“They advised he made a TikTok live video at approximately 2300 hours,” deputies wrote. “They advised that he just had the video going while he was driving without him saying anything.”
Urker had more than 36,000 followers on TikTok.
When Urker did not report to work the next day, Anita Blanchard and his employer agreed to check on him. Their concern ultimately led them to contact law enforcement.
The sheriff’s office told News Media that the investigation is ongoing and that there were “no signs of foul play.” Urker was found on his 34th birthday.
“If that would change at any point, or there would be any major update in this investigation, we would issue a new statement,” the sheriff’s office said.
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Gypsy Rose Blanchard and Melissa G. Moore attend An Evening with Lifetime: Conversations on Controversies FYC event at The Lounge at Studio 10 on May 1, 2024, in Los Angeles, Calif. (Variety via Getty Images)
Gypsy Rose Blanchard was sentenced to 10 years in prison in 2016 after pleading guilty to second-degree murder for her role in the fatal stabbing of her mother, Clauddine “Dee Dee” Blanchard. She committed the crime with her then-boyfriend, Nicholas Godejohn, and the case later inspired Hulu’s 2019 series “The Act.”
Godejohn received a sentence of life in prison without parole. Blanchard was released on parole in December 2023 after serving 85% of her sentence.
Urker and Gypsy Rose Blanchard became engaged in 2018 while she was incarcerated, though they later separated. They reunited after her first marriage, and the couple welcomed their daughter, Aurora, on Dec. 28, 2024.
In a statement to PEOPLE, Blanchard said she believes Urker died from a drug overdose.
“I don’t know if it was intentional or not,” Gypsy Rose Blanchard told the outlet. “He was not in a good state of mind lately.”
She shared a photo of Urker on Instagram Friday, writing, “You will always be my greatest love story. You will be remembered and loved forever.”
Blanchard also addressed Urker’s reported struggle with cyberbullying in an Instagram Story.
“Ken endured an unimaginable level of public scrutiny and relentless cyberbullying across social media platforms, including TikTok and Reddit,” she wrote. “The cruelty directed toward him was something no human being should have to endure. I believe the tremendous weight of that scrutiny and harassment had a profound impact on him, and I hope his passing serves as a reminder that there is a real person behind every screen, every headline, and every comment.”
“I will make sure [Aurora] grows up knowing how deeply her father loved her and who he was beyond what strangers on the internet chose to say about him,” she added.
The post, shared with her one million followers, garnered nearly 100,000 likes within hours.