Autopsy results due next week in Madoff investor's death

NEW YORK (CNN) -- Investigators won't know until next week the cause of death of Thierry de la Villehuchet, a hedge fund adviser whose firm reportedly lost $1.5 billion investing with Bernard Madoff.

Madoff is accused of bilking investors out of $50 billion in a Ponzi scheme, a fraudulent structure that pays returns to investors out of money paid by other investors rather than from profit.

Emergency crews found de la Villehuchet's body in his Madison Avenue office Tuesday morning in what police called an apparent suicide. He worked for Access International Advisors.

Pathologists conducted an autopsy Wednesday on the 65-year-old, but they are waiting for the results of toxicology tests before making a determination about the cause of death, said Ellen Borakove, spokeswoman for the New York medical examiner's office. The results should be available next week, she said.

De la Villehuchet suffered "cuts made to his arm, to his wrist and also to his bicep area with a box cutter," New York Police Commissioner Ray Kelly said at a news conference Tuesday. He also told reporters pills were present, though it wasn't clear whether any were ingested, and he said there was no suicide note. Watch the police official on what was found at the scene »

Madoff's attorney, Daniel Horowitz, declined to comment.

Liliane Bettencourt, the world's richest woman, is believed to have entrusted part of her $22.9 billion fortune with Madoff through de la Villehuchet, according to reports.

The 86-year-old daughter of L'Oreal founder Eugene Schueller is thought to be an investor in a fund managed by Access International Advisors, although her investment isn't public.

Calls to Bettencourt's foundation, Foundation Bettencourt Schueller, were not returned.

Bettencourt is among other wealthy individuals from Europe and around the world who reportedly have lost money related to Madoff. The list is believed to include Spanish billionaire Alicia Koplowitz, film director Steven Spielberg and Nobel laureate Elie Wiesel.

Kelly read a statement from an Access International Advisors attorney saying the firm lost $1.5 billion by investing with Madoff, 70, a former Nasdaq chairman.

Access International Advisors no longer registers with the Securities and Exchange Commission, according to the SEC's Web site.

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