The professional wrestler known as "Test" or the "Punisher" planned to leave Monday to celebrate in France, Sweden and Belgium, according to his MySpace page. But authorities found his body Friday night at about 8 o'clock. And officers have since disclosed that they discovered prescription drugs, including painkillers and steroids, in the Harbour Place apartment.
A neighbor had become suspicious after watching him lie motionless on a couch for hours and called police. It appeared Mr. Martin was in the middle of a meal when he died, said police spokeswoman Laura McElroy. There was a half-eaten pizza and soda nearby. Officers do not suspect foul play. There were no signs of trauma to Mr. Martin, she said. "He was obviously very healthy, McElroy said. The mystery of his death will likely be solved by his toxicology report. Mr. Martin last performed for the World Wide Entertainment wrestling show in February 2007. Fans have been speculating on numerous Web sites about why professional wrestlers have died young, including two locally.
Former professional wrestler Brian "Crush" Adams, 44, died Aug. 13, 2007, in his New Tampa home. An autopsy report found a mix of prescription drugs, a pain reliever, muscle relaxer and anxiety medication. And on Jan. 19, 2007, ex-wrestler Scott Charles "Bam Bam" Bigelow, 45, died in his home in Hudson. Cause of death: multiple drugs, an autopsy revealed. Many wrestling deaths cite coronary problems, which can be linked to excessive steroid use. Pro wrestlers are not tested for performance-enhancing drugs such as steroids. More than 40 fans and friends left messages on Mr. Martin's MySpace page.
One remembered watching Mr. Martin exhibit self control when a fan "spat in your face and you were cool enough to stop the security guards from throwing him out for the sake of the kids who came with him so they could stay at the show."
On his page, Mr. Martin listed his dad as his hero and that "a good scary movie on the couch with my girl is a good night."
As seen on WWE Raw or not seen they didn't bother to air a graphic in honor of Andrew "Test" Martin, who served nearly seven years of service to the company at various points from 1998 through 2007. Company officials are said to be on edge about Martin as his death brought them some unwanted bad publicity when they're trying harder than to ever to present a clean image to the public. As result, they didn't announce the Von Erichs' induction into the WWE Hall of Fame during the broadcast since of the five wrestling sons of the legendary Fritz Von Erich, four died before their 34th birthday. Instead, they quietly made the announcement on WWE.com.
Perhaps in another sign that WWE is trying to shy away from the death of Martin, they put up a graphic acknowledging his passing on the front page of the company website on Saturday, but pulled it early Sunday. While the statement regarding his passing is still up, it's buried amidst a sea of miscellaneous headlines. Furthermore, they didn't bother to put up a tribute photo gallery in honor of Martin like they usually do when a past or present company performer passes away. Is the WWE trying to make the memory of Test vanish like they did with Chris Benoit?
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