Ronald Ilitch, Son Of Little Caesar’s Founder, Dead At 61

DEARBORN, MI – Funeral services for Ronald Ilitch, son of Little Caesar’s founder and Detroit Red Wings and Tigers owner Mike Ilitch, will take place Wednesday at St. Clement Orthodox Church on Ford Road in Dearborn, the family announced. Ilitch, 61, was found dead in a Troy hotel room Friday.

Troy police say they found Ilitch dead in the room after a female acquaintance called 911 to report that he wasn’t breathing.

Police Troy asked that people “honor the request of privacy from the Ilitch family during this time of grief.” Police said that there were no signs of trauma to Ilitch's body. Police found "a personal use" amount of narcotics, mostly prescription drugs, in Ilitch's room.

Police say they are investigating, “as with any unexpected death,” and have assigned a detective to the case to work with the Oakland County Medical Examiner’s Office. Toxicology results are pending.

The Detroit Free Press referred to the death as “a suspected drug overdose.”

Ilitch, who wasn't involved in his family's businesses, had faced a series of personal hardships, including a 2014 guilty plea on cocaine possession charges, and a more recent DUI in Colorado.

Ilitch had four adult children, and was one of seven children of the Red Wings and Little Caesar’s owner. At the time of his death, he was nearing the end of two years of supervised probation for a 2016 plea to operating while intoxicated/impaired that occurred in Colorado. Ilitch also pleaded guilty to use of a controlled substance in 2014.

Visitation for family and friends will be 1 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Tuesday at the at the A.J. Desmond & Sons Funeral Home at 32515 Woodward Ave. in Royal Oak. A funeral will be at 10 a.m. on Wednesday.

Photo via A.J. Desmond & Sons Funeral Directors.