Home where All The Remains rock star found dead to be repossessed
The Stafford Springs home where heavy metal rock star Oliver Herbert lived and near where he was found dead may soon be on the foreclosure market.
Attorneys for the bank that gave Herbert, a guitarist for the band All That Remains, the initial $132,000 mortgage to buy 8 Satkowski Road are asking a judge to grant a strict foreclosure on the property and allow them to immediate;y take possession of it. Herbert was found dead, face down in inches deep water at the edge of the pond on the property on Oct. 16. The State Police Eastern District Crime Squad is investigating his death as suspicious.
The state medical examiner’s office ruled that Herbert, 44, drowned, and called the manner of death “undetermined.” The manner of death is usually listed as homicide, suicide or accident, but state Chief Medical Examiner Dr. James Gill said Herbert’s case will remain undetermined unless new information is developed.
State police sources said police are compiling a timeline of Herbert’s last 24 hours, reviewing his medical history and searching for people who may have been in contact with him on or before Oct. 16, when his body was found in Hydeville Pond. He had been reported missing by his wife, Elizabeth Herbert. The couple has lived in a home that borders the pond since 2014, town records show.
Herbert, 44, was a founding member of All That Remains, a Springfield-based band that recently released a new album and is currently touring in Europe.
Court records show that in June, the Freedom Mortgage Corporation filed a foreclosure notice in Rockville Superior Court alleging that Oliver Herbert hadn’t paid a bank loan of $132,554 on a mortgage for the home. The records show that Oliver Herbert never contested the foreclosure and a judge issued a default motion against him for failing to appear in September, in effect granting the bank’s foreclosure.
The Herberts purchased the home in 2013 for $135,000, according to town records.
Last week, attorneys for the mortgage company filed a motion seeking a judgement of strict foreclosure and are asking a judge to give the mortgage company immediate possession of the home where Elizabeth Herbert still lives. Court records show that the balance owed is $123,500 with additional costs for taxes, insurance and interest pushing the total to more than $137,000.
Herbert was reported missing on Oct. 16 by his wife at about 3 p.m. and his body was found by police face down at the edge of the pond where the water was only a few inches deep. Friends said he was supposed to go to a neighbor’s house the night before to watch a movie but didn’t go because he wasn’t feeling well.
His death caused a stir among some of his friends, who are now questioning how he died. Some of them have started a Facebook page called “Justice for Oli Herbert.”
Elizabeth Herbert could not be reached for comment. In a Facebook post, she wrote that she had received a toxicology report from the medical examiner. She has since stopped posting updates.
“Oli was apparently self-treating for manic-depression that has run in his family for several generations,” she wrote. “Anti-depressants were found in his system, as well as a sleep aid.” She also wrote that she canceled a memorial service in Worcester and issued a plea for anyone with information on where her husband may have gotten his drugs to call state police.
“As far as why the memorial service was canceled, concern for my personal safety and home due to numerous threats to both is the reason. If anybody knows where Oli was getting the psych meds, please call Troop C,” she wrote.
It is unclear how much Herbert’s estate is worth. No probate case has been opened yet.
Hartford Courant