PHOENIX (AZFamily) — Arizona’s top prosecutor is looking to hold a Valley apartment complex accountable after a man died in the summer heat while the air conditioning wasn’t working.

The medical examiner determined issues with Frank Paterniti’s heart caused his accidental death, but other illnesses and heat also played a part in it.

Environmental heat exposure is listed as how the injury occurred, making him one of the more than 175 confirmed heat-related deaths so far this year in Maricopa County.

“He was simple. He was caring. He was loving,” said Allyssa Paterniti, Frank’s niece. “He always called me his favorite niece.”

Frank Paterniti was proud to be part of a big Italian family.

“He was always in the kitchen making pasta and meatballs,” she said.

Allyssa lives in Cleveland. Th

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