Ken Urker, partner of Gypsy Rose Blanchard, found dead in Louisiana home

<p>The Lafourche Parish Sheriff's Office confirmed that Kenan "Ken" Urker, the partner of Gypsy Rose Blanchard, was found dead inside his Louisiana home on Thursday after family members requested a welfare check.</p><p>Anita Blanchard, Urker's partner's half-sister, reported that she and her husband visited Urker's home and observed him lying unconscious from an outside window, according to an incident report.</p><p>A man accompanying Anita Blanchard entered the house through a window and discovered Urker unresponsive and cold to the touch, the report stated.</p><p>Investigators found syringes and a spoon next to a brown powdery substance in the bathroom, as well as a handgun, two shot glasses, and a syringe on a nightstand next to the bed, according to the report.</p><p>Deputies noted that Urker "appeared to have been there for an extended period of time."</p><p>Anita Blanchard informed authorities that Urker had been with her and her husband at church the previous evening around 8:45 p.m., where he expressed feelings of depression and distress.</p><p>According to deputies, Urker made a TikTok live video at approximately 11:00 p.m. the previous night, during which he did not speak.</p><p>Urker had gained over 36,000 followers on TikTok.</p><p>After Urker did not report to work the following day, Anita Blanchard and Urker's employer decided to check on him, which led to the involvement of law enforcement.</p><p>The sheriff's office stated that the case remains under investigation, but there are "no signs of foul play." Thursday was Urker's 34th birthday.</p><p>The sheriff's office indicated that they would provide updates if there were any significant developments in the investigation.</p><p>Gypsy Rose Blanchard was sentenced to 10 years in prison for second-degree murder in 2016 for her involvement in the fatal stabbing of her mother, Clauddine "Dee Dee" Blanchard, alongside her then-boyfriend Nicholas Godejohn. The incident inspired the 2019 TV series "The Act" on Hulu.</p><p>Godejohn received a life sentence without parole, while Blanchard was released on parole in December 2023 after serving 85% of her sentence.</p><p>Urker and Gypsy Rose Blanchard became engaged in 2018 while she was incarcerated, but later separated. They rekindled their relationship after her first marriage and welcomed their daughter, Aurora, on December 28, 2024.</p><p>In a statement to PEOPLE, Blanchard expressed her belief that Urker died from a drug overdose.</p><p>"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."</p><p>She shared a photo of Urker on Instagram, stating, "You will always be my greatest love story. You will be remembered and loved forever."</p><p>Gypsy Rose Blanchard also addressed Urker's struggles with cyberbullying on social media.</p><p>"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."</p><p>"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.</p><p>The post, shared with her one million followers, received nearly 100,000 likes within hours.</p>