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Robin Williams autopsy: Paranoia preceded actor’s suicide

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In the days before Robin Williams hanged himself in his stepson’s bedroom, the troubled actor became increasingly paranoid and had difficulty sleeping, according to a coroner’s report.

Williams would talk in his sleep, and the nightly disruptions got so bad for him and his wife that Williams took to sleeping in the bedroom of his stepson, who was away, according to newly released details included in the Marin County coroner’s autopsy report.

The day before he was found dead in his Tiburon home on Aug. 11, Williams put a few of his wristwatches into a sock and dropped it off at an associate’s house — an odd incident his wife chalked up to his increasing concern over the safety of his valuables.

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Later that evening, Williams handed his wife some magazines he’d bought for her and toyed around on his iPad for a bit. Then he retired to his stepson’s bedroom and locked the door.

The next morning, while Williams’ wife was running errands, one of his assistants and another individual at the home became concerned when the actor didn’t leave the bedroom. They slipped a note under the door to see if he was OK, but there was no response.

Eventually, according to the coroner’s report, the assistant picked the bedroom lock with a paper clip and found Williams’ body.

A toxicology report showed proper amounts of prescription medications in Williams’ system, but no alcohol or illicit drugs.

The time of the actor’s death was recorded as 12:02 p.m. on Aug. 11.

In a career that spanned more than three decades, the Oscar-winning actor starred in such movies as “Good Will Hunting,” “Dead Poets Society” and “Good Morning, Vietnam,” as well as the popular television show “Mork & Mindy.”

Williams was open about his problems with cocaine and alcohol over the years. He spent time on a Hazelden campus in Oregon in 2006. He later revealed that drinking had become a problem for him again after 20 years of sobriety.

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Weeks before he died, Williams returned to rehab to “fine-tune” his sobriety.

The actor “has been battling severe depression of late,” his publicist, Mara Buxbaum, said soon after his death.

Born in Chicago in 1951, Williams was accepted into John Houseman’s acting program at Juilliard along with Christopher Reeve, who became a lifelong friend.

Follow the reporter on Twitter: @JosephSerna

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