An Emmy-winning set decorator who had not been seen since September was found dead Tuesday in her Queens, New York, apartment, according to police.
The body of Evelyn Sakash, 66, was discovered underneath a pile of garbage in her kitchen, a spokesperson for the New York City Police Department said. The remains were in a decomposed state, according to the spokesperson, who said that police do not suspect criminality in her death.
A medical examiner will determine the cause of death.
The discovery was made by Sakash's sister and a cleaning crew she had hired to clear out the apartment, police said. Officers had been to the residence twice before over the past six months — once to remove pets from the apartment — but did not find Sakash, the NYPD said Thursday.
A missing person report said that Sakash was last seen in Queens on Sept. 30. Her family launched a GoFundMe to raise money to help her sister, Ellen Brown, search for her. The page was updated on Wednesday to announce Sakash's body was found.
"Our beautiful sister Evelyn was found deceased in her home," the organizer, Madeline O'Connell Hartling, wrote, remembering Sakash as a "kind, loving, and generous friend and sister."
Sakash was a known hoarder, according to The Associated Press. Brown told the New York Daily News that she did not want her sister to be remembered by the way she was found.
“This is just devastating,” Brown told the outlet. "She had a full life. She was so extraordinarily talented. She was a brilliant mind."
Brown could not immediately be reached Thursday at phone numbers listed for her.
Sakash won a Daytime Emmy in 2003 for the PBS series “Between the Lions," which ended in November 2010. Throughout her career as a set designer, she also worked on "Orange Is the New Black," "Still Alice," and "Law & Order: Criminal Intent," according to her IMDb page.