Updated 5:30 AM EDT, Wed March 19, 2014

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Famed fashion designer L'Wren Scott was found dead Monday, March 17, 2014 of an apparent suicide in her New York City apartment, a law enforcement official familiar with the investigation told CNN. Scott's creations were popular with Madonna, Christina Hendricks and other stars as well as the public who patronized her Banana Republic line introduced in late 2013. Scott was 49.

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The Rolling Stones have postponed the rest of their tour of Australia and New Zealand, according to a statement on the band's website.

The move comes in the wake of the death of Mick Jagger's longtime girlfriend, fashion designer L'Wren Scott. Scott was found dead Monday in her New York apartment from an apparent suicide. The 49-year-old was discovered hanging from a door knob with a scarf around her neck, said a law enforcement official familiar with the investigation.

"Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Charlie Watts and Ronnie Wood wish to thank all of their fans for their support at this difficult time and hope that they will fully understand the reason for this announcement," the statement said. "The Rolling Stones are planning to reschedule these postponed shows at a later date."

Scott had been dating Jagger, 70, since at least 2003, and the rocker was often a fixture at his girlfriend's fashion shows.

MickJagger.com, the singer's official website, posted the following statement Tuesday: "I am still struggling to understand how my lover and best friend could end her life in this tragic way. We spent many wonderful years together and had made a great life for ourselves. She had great presence and her talent was much admired, not least by me. I have been touched by the tributes that people have paid to her, and also the personal messages of support that I have received. I will never forget her."

The same statement was also posted on Jagger's Facebook page where fans left messages of encouragement for the singer, including, "My deepest condolances mick, there are no answers for these kind of situations" and "peace, mate."

A representative for the New York Police Department said the New York medical examiner will determine the cause of death as the investigation continues into what led up to it. CNNMoney reports the designer's business was facing mounting losses and debts.

The fashion industry registered shock at the death of the famed designer whose fashions graced such luminaries as first lady Michelle Obama, Madonna and Oprah Winfrey. Scott was beloved for her designs as well as her personal fashion that she honed as a model for designer Thierry Mugler in the 1980s before she began a steady climb, first as a stylist, and later with her own label.

"She was so tall and so glamorous, so unlike anyone else you'd ever seen," Amy Larocca of New York magazine wrote. "She was easy in her six-foot-three skin as she'd sit down to watch the models parade their narrow pencil skirts, their snug little cardigans, and their general air of film-noir fantasy up and down the runway."

In a reflection of Scott and her early career in The New York Times, fashion writer Suzy Menkes noted, "As a much lauded but discreet stylist, she became a power behind the Hollywood thrones."

Menkes added, "The discretion that the designer showed in her work was mirrored by her attitude as a partner to a rock icon. Her clothes suggested a strong and feisty woman, yet she remained a very private person."

Scott was once quoted as saying, "I'm a fashion designer. I don't want to be defined as someone's girlfriend," and following her death several observers took exception with the media focus on her relationship with Jagger.

Fashion writer Nico Bellay tweeted, "My thoughts are with Mick, but her name is L'Wren Scott, not 'Mick Jagger's Girlfriend."