Evelyn Sakash has been found mummified beneath hoarded rubbish at her home in New York.
The 66-year-old Emmy-winning production designer was found dead in her home kitchen in Queens, New York on Tuesday afternoon.
Sakash's sister Ellen Brown described her sister as a "heavy hoarder" and was the one to alert the police after not hearing from Evelyn in a while following her disappearance back in September.
Brown had arrived in Queens with a professional cleaner to clear out the home to see if her sister was inside.
At 4:15PM on Tuesday, Sakash's mummified remains were discovered face-up beneath accumulated rubbish in her kitchen.
Evelyn Sakash's credits include her Daytime Emmy-winning work on Between The Lions, the Netflix prison drama Orange Is The New Black, and the films Mermaids and Still Alice.
Ellen Brown told Daily News: "This is just devastating. She had a full life. She was so extraordinarily talented. She was a brilliant mind."
She added: "I don’t want my sister to be remembered like that, like the way she was found."
Reiterating that her sister was more than a 'Queens hoarder', noting: "This was clearly in effect for a long time."
A source told the publication that investigators believe she died after "an avalanche of garbage and debris" in her home.
They note that it is likely to have occurred around the time she first disappeared in September 2020.
According to the publication, the city Medical Examiner’s office report states that Sakash died of natural causes and had succumb to arteriosclerotic cardiovascular disease.
Neighbours told the publication that thought felt she had looked "sick" and "withdrawn" after the death of her mother last April and prior to her disappearance.
Police were noted to have visited the property at least twice over the past seven months, having emptied the home of the pets that Sakash kept but did not locate her body on those occasions.
Friends of the late production designer had raised more than $5,000 online through a GoFundMe page to help aid the police investigations into her disappearance.
The fundraiser now remains open to raise money to help with funeral expenses.
In an update to the GoFundMe page on Wednesday, organiser Madeline Hartling added "Evelyn's sister Ellen Brown has retained the cleaning company that found her and must now plan Evelyn's funeral as well.
"I would like to double the Go Fund Me fundraising goal to $20,000 to assist Ellen with these expenses, which will be large.
"Please consider making a donation in Evelyn's memory so we can support Ellen and remember her as the kind, loving, and generous friend and sister we live and will miss so. Thankyou!"
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