James Bissett, the co-owner of Long Island Aquarium, was found dead Wednesday night in what police are calling an apparent suicide.

Police said Bissett was found dead in his car parked in Veterans Memorial Park Wednesday night during an evening patrol, the New York Post reported. While the cause has not been revealed, his death was ruled by police as an apparent suicide and is being investigated by Southold detectives and the Suffolk County Medical Examiner's Office, though there appears to have no foul play.

Bisset, a Mattituck, Long Island resident, owned the popular Long Island Aquarium and a Hyatt Hotel nearby the aquarium and ran a nursery and marina.

The Long Island Aquarium & Exhibition Center, Hyatt Place East End Hotel, Bissett Nursery, and Treasure Cove Resort Marina communities mourn the loss of co-owner and founder, James J. Bissett III, who died on Wednesday, December 14 near his home in Mattituck, NY. He was 48.

No words can adequately express our sadness at Mr. Bissett's death or our gratitude for the opportunity to work with him, the aquarium said in a statement. We will honor his memory by dedicating ourselves to continuing the work he loved so much.

issett recently put his Mattituck home on the market for $8.9 million but it was reduced to $5.8 million within months, the New York Post reported.

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