The Tragic, Real-Life Story Of The Storage Wars Cast

The life of an acclaimed treasure hunter is one of niche interests. At least, that was until A&E greenlit the airing of "Storage Wars" in 2010, which took the lost art to heights it had never seen. Among its praised collectors, the show sought to capture the life of professional buyers. In turn, "Storage Wars" garnered a relatively large fan base thanks to its original cast of real-life auction buyers-slash-auctioneers and their eccentric personalities, ranging from lovable Kenny "watch your profanity" Crossley to the proclaimed antagonist of the show, Dave "Yuuup!" Hester. The series saw its fair share of changes, spanning across spin-offs set in different states — and even foreign countries — alongside new additions to the cast. Its reality show premise lent itself to numerous drama-filled incidents and tragic moments. 

The cast wasn't exempt from these tragedies behind the cameras, either, as most of the original "Storage Wars" cast had to overcome many unfortunate circumstances before and after their inclusion in the show. From stumbling upon horrid secrets in storage units to facing the scary reality of fame — losing family members and even almost losing themselves — misfortune tended to follow our beloved cast of treasure hunters. To learn more about their ill-fated ordeals, here is the tragic, real-life story of the "Storage Wars" cast.

The self-proclaimed "collector," Barry Weiss, was among some of the fan-favorites on "Storage Wars." With his popularity earning him his own spin-off, "Barry'd Treasure" in 2014, his stint as a reality show star was a massively successful venture. Over time, however, Weiss eventually stepped away from reality television and returned to a life away from treasure-hunting. One of his pastimes happened to be going on rides on his motorcycle, which, unfortunately, landed Weiss in the hospital in 2019. 

As reported by TMZ that year, Weiss and his friend, Jamie, took their motorcycle out for a ride in the Los Feliz neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. According to the publication, Barry and Jamie rammed into the back of a car coming out of a parking space. While Jamie only sustained a few minor injuries himself, he took to Instagram to further inform his followers of Weiss' status, who had more fractures and internal complications. "Not a good day at the office, a serious crash today while out riding with a friend," he wrote. "I got lucky, only a broken knee, elbow, and wrist. My friend is much worse and has serious chest and leg trauma. Please send your prayers to Barry." Weiss' injuries landed him in the ICU, where he had to undergo several surgeries on his back and femur. Luckily, he survived the incident, and after a lengthy rehabilitation process, he later returned to "Storage Wars" to continue his work.

From her inclusion in Season 1 of "Storage Wars," Brandi Passante completely evolved into a well-known reality show star. Her effortless chemistry with her partner, Jarrod Schulz, prompted A&E to produce the spin-off, "Brandi & Jarrod: Married to the Job" in 2014, further cementing her position in reality television. This quick rise to stardom wasn't always pleasant for Passante, as in 2020, she opened up about her horrifying experiences with fans of the show that led to struggles in her personal life. 

During her appearance on Danny Jordan's "The Dad Diary," Passante spoke about her rough adjustment to fame. As she got used to people recognizing her in public, she noted that in the beginning, she was being sent frightening letters that caused her to fear for her and her family's well-being. "I got some scary letters in the very beginning," she recalled. "I did have to move at one point to a guard-gated community." The fan's parasocial behaviors caused Passante to seclude herself from the outside world. Although she was part of a successful television show, she told Jordan she needed extra help coping with the public attention she garnered. "It was definitely life-changing. I did have to have a little bit of therapy about it," she said. "I didn't like to leave the house for quite some time, but I'm good now."

Brandon Sheets spent most of his time on "Storage Wars" treasure hunting alongside his father, Darrell Sheets. That was until 2017, when he was fired due to budget cuts. With his father still on payroll, this left Brandon with a plethora of new career paths to venture into, from real estate to — most notably — driving for UPS. While working for UPS, however, he'd get into a severe car accident that left him criticizing the company for its malpractices. 

In a 2024 Instagram post displaying the wreck their truck was in, Brandon wrote a lengthy caption describing the car crash. "I was asleep in the 'berth' — also known as sleeper — of our UPS semi truck," he wrote. "Then the co-driver I had filling in for my partner struck another truck going 70 miles per hour." From waking up to what he described as a "bomb going off," Brandon was sent to a hospital in Texas, then back home to Arizona, where he started his road to recovery. Though he only sustained minor injuries, Brandon pointed out that he didn't receive workers' compensation or reimbursement for his damaged belongings in the truck. He also noted that UPS should have more protocols in place to ensure the safety of its drivers. "We should all work together to spread safety awareness, and UPS should have more training available for sleeper teams that are over the road," he said. 

Before his involvement in "Storage Wars," Dan Dotson led a life filled with success. From learning the ropes at a young age, Dan launched the company, American Auctioneer, and later had his wife, Laura Dotson, accompany him as his longstanding business partner. Similar to other "Storage Wars" couples like Jarrod Schulz and Brandi Passante, Dan and Laura spent most of their time on the show holding auctions together.

However, tragedy struck in 2014, when CBS reported that Dan suffered a double brain aneurysm. Laura told the publication that she found him while it was happening. In the midst of him sustaining a headache and jumbling his speech, Laura appeared to take matters into her own hands. "He looks at me and his eyes are rolled back in his head and his legs are going out, and the color immediately went from like, he was real red and purple to, like, a bluish-green," she said. 

Luckily, Dan survived and even returned to his career as an auctioneer afterward. According to neurologist M. Asif Taqi, this was partly due to him not sustaining any severe internal bleeding beforehand. His return wouldn't come without any life adjustments, as Laura noted that Dan, who was an avid smoker, decided to quit while she was visiting him in the hospital. "He says, 'Guess what? I'm a nonsmoker,'" she recalled. "Thank you, God." 

There's no limit to what auctioneers can find in storage units. Everything from rare finds to common duds was usually within the range of what was expected from the cast of "Storage Wars." This didn't mean they didn't stumble upon some bizarre sights, though, as a special episode of "Storage Wars" saw Darrell Sheets unveil the worst-case scenario as a treasure hunter. While Laura Dotson described a story she heard about a woman finding a corpse in an abandoned storage unit, Sheets added that this happened to him as well. "I actually found a body years ago in like 1988 down in San Diego, California," he said (via Starcasm). "You know, I don't really want to talk about it a whole lot, but it wasn't a pleasant situation. But in this business, it does happen."

His avoidance of explaining the situation any further conveyed how traumatic it was for him. During his 2012 interview with Reality Weekly, Sheets touched on the subject yet again, diving deeper into the unpleasant details (via Starcasm). According to Sheets, the San Diego police department informed him that the corpse was that of a wife who was murdered by her husband. Due to it being an ongoing investigation, the storage unit was seized. "It was a very horrific story, and it was an occult group and all that kind of stuff," he recalled. "The San Diego police confiscated everything in the locker."

Since his inclusion in "Storage Wars," Dave Hester became known as the show's main antagonist. He never had a good relationship with any of his co-stars, from Brandi Passante to Laura Dotson. Hester's behavior on the show carried over to behind the cameras, so much so that, in 2012, A&E let him go before Season 4. The reason for his termination stemmed from his alleged attempt to expose the network for staging the show. After his departure, Hester filed a wrongful termination lawsuit against the producers of "Storage Wars," asking for $750,000 in damages (via Attorney Julien).

With the case being dismissed and later reinstated, the two parties eventually settled for an undisclosed amount. Afterward, Hester got to return for Season 5 of "Storage Wars" and remained a regular cast member up to Season 11. However, this wouldn't be the end of his courtroom appearances, as in 2020, Keker Van Nest & Peters reported that he was, yet again, embroiled in another lawsuit. This time, however, his legal issue was with Public Storage. While continuing to maintain his career as a professional buyer, it seemed that Hester got his hands on a storage unit for $12,000. Unfortunately, the unit was wrongfully put up for sale when it still technically belonged to the original owner. A California appeals court ultimately ruled against Hester, causing him to return the storage unit and all of its contents to Public Storage.

After surviving a brain aneurysm, it seemed that more tragedy was on the way for both Dan Dotson and his wife, Laura Dotson. Aside from Dan sustaining a major injury after one of his French bulldogs nearly bit off one of his fingers, both Dan and Laura almost suffered a traumatic loss in 2020. As reported by New York Daily News, their son, Garrett Dotson, who was 22 at the time, was shot in Arizona while he was visiting his significant other. After the incident, Laura told the publication that it was her son who called 911, and he was promptly rushed to a local hospital.

Due to the severity of his condition, he was then airlifted to Las Vegas. "He was bleeding internally. The bullet ruptured his vena cava. He was filling with blood," she noted. "The doctor hopped on the table and used his hands to hold everything together and massage my son's heart. He straddled my son all the way to Las Vegas." Once he got to Las Vegas, Garrett had to undergo surgery immediately. Luckily, the operation went well. "A lot of people came together to save our son, and we're just so happy," Dan said. "This could have been a much different outcome." According to People, the shooter, Garrett Wilder, was arrested shortly after the incident and was charged with two counts of aggravated assault, disorderly conduct with a weapon, and other related crimes. 

Since the conception of "Storage Wars," Jarrod Schulz and Brandi Passante have been an inseparable couple that fans adored. Despite their conveniently titled spinoff, "Brandi & Jarrod: Married to the Job," the two never tied the knot. Unfortunately, their relationship eventually came to an end in 2021. On the Season 13 premiere of "Storage Wars," both Schulz and Passante announced their breakup (via People). This, however, didn't stop them from working alongside each other. 

All seemed well for the ex-lovers after their split until May of that year, when TMZ reported that Schulz was facing charges of domestic violence against his former partner. According to the publication, Schulz got into a verbal dispute with Passante while she was with some friends at a bar in Orange County. After unsuccessfully Passante unsuccessfully told her ex to leave, the two allegedly got physical. 

Schulz appeared to remain silent about the ordeal, leaving fans to wonder if the news was real or not. The only confirmation "Storage Wars" fans got was a cryptic Instagram post from Passante, showing off a tattoo that read "free," accompanied by a lengthy caption explaining how her tattoo tied into her history of domestic violence. "To me, it means that somehow, by the grace of God, I managed to escape a very difficult situation that so many people fall victim to," she wrote. I will be eternally grateful for the life and freedom, without fear, that I get to live now."

Viewers may not remember Mark Balelo's inclusion in "Storage Wars," as it was relatively short-lived. However, his presence was certainly felt as his abbrasing bidding style and "Rico Suave" nickname made him stand out. Despite his quick run on the show — from Season 2 to Season 4 — Balelo's fate is certainly the most tragic of all. Among all his run-ins with the law — including one that saw him admit to a drug conviction in 2009 — a drug-related offense in 2013 ultimately became his last. Within that same year, TMZ reported that Balelo died by suicide. 

According to the publication, his death appeared to be due to carbon monoxide poisoning. This allegedly occurred after Balelo had been arrested for drug possession. Though he got out of the situation without facing serious time, the entire arrest seemed to negatively affect Balelo's mental well-being. So much so that he asked his fiancée, Elizabeth Metzidis, to keep him company at his office during that time, since he felt mentally unstable. All seemed well for Balelo as he appeared to be doing better during this visit, prompting Metzidis to leave. Sadly, he was found dead in his car the very next day. 

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In 2013, Rene Nezhoda joined the "Storage Wars" cast alongside his wife, Casey Nezhoda. While their dynamic rivaled that of the other couples on the show, Rene also had a dynamic that rivaled that of the father-son duo, Darrell and Brandon Sheets. In 2015, "Storage Wars" viewers were introduced to his father, Gunter Nezhoda. Since then, Rene's father became a fan favorite throughout his guest appearances. 

Unfortunately, in March 2023, Rene took to Instagram to share that his father had passed away at 67 years old. In a video addressing his father's death, Rene unveiled that Gunter was diagnosed with lung cancer 6 months prior due to a never-ending smoking habit. While his family held out hope for him getting better, Rene noted that he had "all kinds of holes in his lungs, there was nothing else the doctors could do." Despite his apparent grief throughout the video, Rene felt it was his responsibility to share the news of his father's passing due to how beloved he was within the "Storage Wars" fanbase. "My dad was one of the guys on 'Storage Wars' that never really got any hate," he said. "People just loved being around him. Including the crew, including everybody. Everybody loved working with my dad."