Darrell Sheets, an auction bidder who specialized in storage unit liquidations and starred on the long-running reality television show “Storage Wars,” died on Tuesday at his home in Lake Havasu, Ariz. He was 67.
The Lake Havasu police said in a statement that Mr. Sheets was found in his home with what appeared to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound and was pronounced dead at the scene.
“Storage Wars” premiered on the A&E network in 2010 and is in its 17th season. The show follows teams of professional buyers as they bid on the contents of abandoned storage units. Teams have only a few minutes to inspect the lockers, and they can’t touch any of the items before placing a bid.
The show is based in California, where under state law the contents of a storage unit can be sold after around two months if its renter fails to pay on time. The latest season premiered in February.
Spinoffs have been based in Dallas, New York City, Toronto and Miami.
Mr. Sheets, whose bidding career spanned over 30 years, appeared in 163 episodes of “Storage Wars” over 13 years. His nickname on the show was “The Gambler” — a nod to his high-risk, high-return approach to auctions.
In one of his most successful bids, he paid just over $200 for a locker filled with art that was valued at over $20,000. His other jackpot finds included a locker filled with work by Frank Gutierrez, a Mexican artist and photographer, that was appraised at over $300,000. Another locker he found contained around $30,000 worth of comic books.
A&E has said that Mr. Sheets also found four Picassos through storage auctions. The network did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
“My advice about bidding is don’t make yourself seen,” Mr. Sheets said in an episode of the show in 2013.
But other contestants on the show said he had a tell when he was interested in placing a bid: a slight nod or a raise of his eyebrows.
After leaving the show in 2023, Mr. Sheets opened an antique shop in Lake Havasu City, Ariz. He named it Havasu Show Me Your Junk.
The store’s inventory has included pinball machines, neon signs, hot rods, jewelry, clothes, slot machines and a tractor, among other things.
The store also held estate sales. A poster advertising one such sale last year said: “You Don’t Have to Die Before We Buy!”
In 2019, Mr. Sheets suffered two heart attacks and underwent heart surgery. “I will survive this but it is a huge life change,” he said on social media at the time.
Information about his survivors were not immediately available on Thursday. His son Brandon Sheets also appeared on “Storage Wars” and said he learned the trade of storage-locker auctions from his father.
“Bidding is a habit,” the older Mr. Sheets said in 2013. “It’s addicting. And if you see someone bidding, they’re going to want to bid.”
If you are having thoughts of suicide, call or text 988 to reach the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline or go to SpeakingOfSuicide.com/resources for a list of additional resources.
Sopan Deb contributed reporting.
Jin Yu Young is a reporter and researcher for The Times, based in Seoul, covering South Korea and international breaking news.
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