Doesn't come as a surprise, as stated in other posts he spoke about what he was going to do.
http://www.news.com.au/story/0,10117,15144885-2,00.html
Rene Rivkin commits suicide
By Nicole Azzopardi and Samantha Baden
May 01, 2005
From: AAP
Flamboyant former stockbroker and convicted insider trader Rene Rivkin has been found dead at his elderly mother's Sydney home.
His family said the 61-year-old was found in a bedroom of the Darling Point house by a family member.
A police spokeswoman read out a hand-written statement to media assembled outside the Darling Point Road penthouse apartment where Mr Rivkin's mother resides.
"The Rivkin family confirmed that Rene Rivkin died today," the statement said.
"He will be sadly missed by all.
"The family wish to be left in peace to grieve.
"There will be no further media statement."
Rose Bay Crime Manager Detective Inspector Grant Taylor said Mr Rivkin's family had gathered at the penthouse.
"The family are obviously distressed and upset and they would obviously like to be left in peace," Det Insp Taylor told reporters.
He said police were called to the residence by ambulance officers who responded to a call.
"Mr Rivkin was found deceased in a bedroom of the apartment," Det Taylor said.
"At this stage there appears to be no suspicious circumstances.
"The matter will be investigated by the coroner in a coronial inquest."
He said crime scene investigators were currently at the apartment and inquiries were at an "early stage".
Earlier ewspaper reports said Mr Rivkin had moved out of his family home to live with his elderly mother after the breakdown of his marriage.
Mr Rivkin, who had bipolar disorder, finished a nine-month periodic detention sentence for insider trading in October last year.
A larger than life personality, Mr Rivkin previously talked about ending his life and attempted suicide in September last year with an overdose of prescription medication, apparently triggered by clinical depression.
"The ending of one's life, which I've thought about a lot, incidentally, because prior to Prozac I was often depressed ... requires a certain amount of bravery which I don't have. I'm not a hero," Mr Rivkin told Andrew Denton previously.
After a lengthy trial on insider trading charges, Mr Rivkin was found to have bought 50,000 Qantas shares just hours after learning of a potential merger between the national carrier and the struggling Impulse airline.
His actions in buying the stock constituted insider trading under the Companies Act because Mr Rivkin knew the information was not generally available and was likely to affect the price of Qantas shares, his trial was told.
Fined $30,000 and sentenced to weekend detention, Mr Rivkin's health almost immediately began to worsen.
Brain tumours, gall bladder problems, deep vein thrombosis, pneumonia, depression and bipolar disorder were among the list of medical and psychological complaints which surfaced in the wake of his sentence.
Close friend and television producer Harry Michaels today remembered Mr Rivkin as a truly unique person who talked openly about his mental illness.
"This is a very sad ending," Mr Michaels told Sky News.
While Mr Michaels said he had not seen first hand evidence of Mr Rivkin's mood swings, the cigar-loving stockbroker had always been open.
"He'd be telling us about it, that he's depressed and he was taking medication.
"The family of Rene suffered for years.
"And I don't think we will ever see a Rene Rivkin again," Mr Michaels said.
Mr Rivkin is survived by his wife Gayle and five children.
