Nevada authorities say a legal pimp who gained popularity for an HBO series about his business and a Republican candidate for the state Legislature has died.
Nye County sheriff Lt. David Boruchowitz said an employee at Dennis Hof’s Love Ranch brothel outside of Las Vegas summoned authorities a little before 11 a.m. Tuesday after Hof was found unresponsive and not breathing. He was 72.
Boruchowitz says there is no sign of foul play.
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Hof was the Republican nominee this year for a heavily GOP legislative district. Ballots have already been printed in the race and it wasn’t immediately clear how elections officials would handle Hof’s death.
Hof owned a handful of brothels in Nevada, the only state that allows them to legally operate.
The sheriff in Nye County, Nevada, says Dennnis Hof had a birthday bash with more than 100 friends, including former Phoenix-area sheriff Joe Arpaio the night before Hof was found dead at one of his brothels.
Sheriff Sharon Wehrly, who also is the county coroner, also was at the party. She says an autopsy will be conducted by the Clark County coroner in Las Vegas.
The Nye County sheriff’s office is investigating.
The sheriff says Hof was sitting on a stool and talking with people when she left the party at the Pahrump Nugget Hotel & Casino after 10 p.m. Monday.