According to reports, the bass player was found dead on the couch by his wife when she returned home at 8:25 p.m. Wednesday, said Craig Harvey, operations chief for the coroner’s office. Paramedics were called and he was declared dead at 8:40 p.m.

“The investigator noted drug paraphernalia, including a single syringe on the kitchen counter, and we are handing it as a possible accidental overdose,” Harvey said.

The coroner’s office did not say what drug was suspected of causing Ramone’s death. An autopsy was reportedly scheduled for June 6.

Dee Dee, born Douglas Glenn Colvin, formed the Ramones in the early ‘70s with singer Joey, guitarist Johnny, and drummer Tommy Ramone. Joey died last April of lymphoma.

At the end of the ‘80s, Dee Dee left the Ramones in pursuit of a solo career as a rap artist, but returned to the band a few years later.

Dee Dee toured as a solo artist after the band got off the road in the mid-‘90s and had a tempestuous relationship with his bandmates. But he did attend the latest Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony with the surviving Ramones where the band was honored for their unique contribution to punk rock.

Dee Dee will undoubtedly be fondly remembered for his manic stage presence and his rapid-fire “one two three four!,” that started so many Ramones songs.