Dawes County Attorney and Coroner Vance Haug is investigating 3 separate and unrelated deaths in a roughly 12-hour period over the weekend, one an apparent suicide and the others from natural causes.

The first death occurred Saturday evening. Haug says 18-year old Chadron State College student Sterling Atkins of Broken Bow lost consciousness while watching television with a friend, and rescue efforts to revive him were unsuccessful.

Haug says an autopsy is scheduled for Monday afternoon along with a significant number of tests, but that Atkins’ death appears to be the result of a medical condition…with no evidence of drug or alcohol use.

An autopsy is planned for Tuesday on 48 year old Dave Hewitt of Whitney, found dead Sunday morning about 9:30 of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound. Haug says foul play is not suspected, but that investigators will review evidence found at the scene as well as the results of the autopsy and lab tests.

While Haug and Dawes County Sheriff’s officers were en route to Hewitt’s home Sunday morning, they received a call about another unattended death…64-year old Patrick Moore of rural Dawes County.  Haug says Moore suffered from a number of life-threatening medical issues with foul play not suspected.