Longtime Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay tragically passed away earlier this year at the age of 65, and some disturbing details have since been revealed that raise questions about his death.
An investigation by the Washington Post has uncovered that Irsay spent the final two years of his life struggling with relapse and drug use, with the Colts hiding his battle during that time from the public.
Reportedly, Irsay relapsed and died while he was being cared for by a “luxury” recovery doctor who prescribed him opioids and later ketamine at amounts that had folks close to Irsay worried about him.
The doctor in question reportedly signed Irsay’s death certificate and stated that the cause of death was cardiac arrest. No autopsy or toxicology testing was performed.
The Washington Post provided some details behind its approach to the investigation and noted that its learnings raise “questions about how authorities investigated his death.”
“The Post’s investigation is based on interviews with five people with direct knowledge of Irsay’s relapse, all of whom spoke on the condition of anonymity out of fear of retaliation from the Colts, who are now owned by Irsay’s three daughters,” wrote Will Hobson, Albert Samaha and Sam Fortier of the Washington Post. “All five said they witnessed Irsay consuming opioid pills. Four said they witnessed Irsay receiving ketamine injections.
“Post reporters also interviewed several other people close to Irsay and obtained previously unreported prescription records, flight data and law enforcement records from California, Indiana and Florida.
“The account of Irsay’s relapse that emerges from The Post’s reporting is at odds with public explanations that Irsay and the Colts gave for his rapidly declining health, and raises questions about how authorities investigated his death.”
The Washington Post found evidence that Irsay suffered three overdoses across his last five years of life. Two of them reportedly came just 12 days apart in December of 2023. Irsay was supposedly prescribed more than 200 opioid pills in the days leading up to those two overdoses.
Back when Irsay suffered an overdose at his home back in 2023, one Colts executive who called 911 reportedly said nothing to the dispatcher about Irsay’s pill or drug use and simply said that he might have been dealing with heart failure.
Plus, when Irsay had a long hospital stay in 2024, the Colts claimed he was being treated for a “severe respiratory illness.” Irsay later said that he had been recovering from back surgery.
In light of the reporting, it may be worth it for authorities to take a look at Irsay’s death once again, as there seems to be some key information that might’ve been glossed over.
“The people with knowledge of Irsay’s relapse said they agreed to speak to The Post because they were concerned about the treatment he received from Harry Haroutunian, a prominent addiction specialist based in California,” Hobson, Samaha and Fortier wrote.
“Over the last two years of Irsay’s life, Haroutunian regularly supplied Irsay with the opioid pills that fueled his addiction, these people said. Images of pill bottles reviewed by The Post show Haroutunian prescribed Irsay more than 200 opioid pills in the days before his two overdoses in December 2023.
“In Irsay’s final months, these people said, Haroutunian began treating him with ketamine, the powerful anesthetic that contributed to the 2023 death of Hollywood actor Matthew Perry. Nurses working under Haroutunian’s direction were frequently seen by these people injecting Irsay with ketamine, which experts said is risky to administer to patients with substance abuse disorders and heart conditions.
“Irsay had a heart condition, these people said, in addition to his publicly admitted addiction struggles.”
Haroutunian said he dedicated 18 months of his life to try to care for Irsay “as a brother.”
Irsay was involved with the Colts for multiple decades leading up to his passing.
“When Irsay died in May at the Beverly Hills Hotel, Haroutunian was also staying there and overseeing Irsay’s care, according to statements from police,” Hobson, Samaha and Fortier wrote. “He signed the death certificate, listing the cause as cardiac arrest due to pneumonia and heart issues.
“The Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner declined to investigate Irsay’s case or conduct an autopsy, a spokeswoman said, because it did not consider his death sudden, violent or unexpected.
“Beverly Hills police closed their investigation into Irsay’s death several days later, according to a department spokesman. Officers who responded to the hotel where Irsay died saw no signs of an overdose or drug use, this spokesman said, and Haroutunian assured them the cause of death was natural.
“But without an autopsy and toxicological testing, according to three experts in death investigations, there is no way to know whether pneumonia caused Irsay’s heart to stop.”
It will be worth monitoring whether the new reporting from the Washington Post leads to any significant developments from here.
