The Latest: Police say Kate Spade's death likely a suicide

The Latest on the death of designer Kate Spade (all times local):

2:55 p.m.

New York City police have confirmed that they are investigating the apparent suicide of fashion designer Kate Spade.

Police Department Chief of Detectives Dermot Shea said at a news briefing Tuesday that the handbag designer's body was discovered by a housekeeper just after 10 a.m.

He said detectives were still in the early stages of the investigation but that all evidence pointed to "a tragic suicide."

A note was left at the scene. Shea declined to speak about what was in the note or about police conversations with the family.

Spade was 55 and had a 13-year-old daughter.

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2:30 p.m.

Kate Spade's family says they are devastated by her death.

The fashion designer was found dead in an apparent suicide in her apartment Tuesday morning. Law enforcement officials say she was discovered by the family housekeeper but her husband and business partner was also there.

The family said through a spokesman that they loved Kate dearly and will miss her terribly. They asked for privacy during "this very difficult time."

She was 55 years old and had a 13-year-old daughter.

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1:40 p.m.

Kate Spade New York says the fashion designer will be "dearly missed."

The company says in a statement that while Spade had not been affiliated with its "beloved brand" for more than a decade, she and her husband were its founders, and the news of her death is "incredibly sad."

The company says its thoughts are with the Spade family.

Law enforcement officials say a housekeeper found the fashion icon dead in her apartment in an apparent suicide Tuesday morning.

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12:15 p.m.

Law enforcement officials say New York fashion designer Kate Spade has been found dead in her apartment in an apparent suicide.

The officials say she was found hanging by housekeeping staff inside her Park Avenue apartment around 10:20 a.m. Tuesday. They say she left a note at the scene. The officials were not authorized to speak publicly and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.

The officials didn't know what the note said.

The 55-year-old Spade created a line of sleek handbags in the early 1990s that created a smash.

Her company, Kate Spade New York, has over 140 retail shops and outlet stores across the U.S. and more than 175 shops internationally.

— Colleen Long