Australian Idol judge found dead

SYDNEY—A former judge on Australian Idol, an offshoot of the hugely successful American Idol singing contest, has been found dead in Sydney, police said on Friday.

Sony Music executive Jay Dee Springbett, 36, was discovered at a Woolloomooloo apartment late Thursday after “concerned acquaintances” contacted authorities who went to check on him.

Police said his death was not being treated as suspicious.

The head of Sony Music Entertainment Australia and New Zealand, Denis Handlin, told 2GB radio that colleagues became concerned when the English-born Springbett did not answer his phone.

“We thought we better let the police know because it’s really not like him and then of course they went to his residence and found him,” Handlin said.

“It’s just so difficult coming to terms with it.”

Australian Idol ran from 2003 to 2009.