Former Miss North Dakota Died In Minneapolis Of Heart Condition

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — An investigation has concluded that a former contestant in the Miss USA pageant from North Dakota died of a genetic heart condition.

The Hennepin County medical examiner's office said Thursday that Samantha Edwards died of arrhythmogenic cardiomyopathy, a rare disease of the heart muscle. The inherited condition causes abnormal heart rhythms.

Edwards was 37 when she was found dead in her home in north Minneapolis on June 14. The medical examiner determined she died of natural causes.

Edwards, known as Sami, represented North Dakota in the Miss USA pageant in 2003. She had been working as a freelance makeup artist in the Minneapolis area.

Her funeral was held June 24 in Grand Forks, North Dakota.

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