Beverly Hills Cop star John Ashton dies aged 76

John Ashton starred in all of the Beverly Hills Cops movies (Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP, file)

John Ashton, the veteran character actor who memorably played the gruff but lovable police detective John Taggart in the Beverly Hills Cop films, has died. He was 76.

Ashton died on Thursday in Fort Collins, Colorado, his family announced in a statement released by Ashton’s manager, Alan Somers, on Sunday. No cause of death was immediately available.