By Yepoka Yeebo and Mariel S. Clark
DNAinfo Staff
SOHO — A former financial executive was found dead in his SoHo apartment Wednesday morning, according to police.
James Patrick Rothstein, 58, was found at 9 a.m. in a pool of blood in the bedroom of his home at 101 Wooster St., NYPD said.
Rothstein was a heavy drinker who had recently split from his wife, according to several people at the scene who knew him but did not want to be identified.
When his wife left and took the couple's kids, he took a turn for the worse, friends of Rothstein's told DNAinfo.
"I know he was going through some stuff," said Lerone Wilson, Rothstein's friend of 15 years. "He was going down hill because he separated from his wife. He was totally depressed about it."
Another friend who also said he had known Rothstein for 15 years but did not want to be named said he had been a neighborhood fixture.
"He was filthy rich, he had the second biggest house in Montauk," said the friend.
"He shared it with everybody. He was the nicest guy."
Police said no criminality was suspected. The investigation into the exact cause of death is ongoing.