Last month, the music world was stunned by the passing of Juice WRLD.
The up-and-coming rapper died unexpectedly after suffering a seizure at a Chicago airport.
He was just 21 years old.
The strange circumstances of his death coupled with his youth have led to intense interest in the cause of Juice WRLD’s death.
The rapper — whose real name was Jarad Higgins — frequently referenced hard drug use in his songs, and his mother issued a statement that seemed to suggest that substance abuse had played a role in her son’s passing.
But until today the speculation that Higgins had died from an overdose was just that.
Now, the Cook County Medical Examiner has released a long-awaiting toxicology exam conducted as part of inquiry into Higgins’ death.
“The Office determined that Higgins died as a result of oxycodone and codeine toxicity,” the report reads.
Sadly, the news does not come as a shock to fans.
Oxycodone is the active ingredient in Percocet, a painkiller that Higgins became addicted to early on in his career.
In his lyrics, Juice WRLD often alluded to his fondness for lean, a concoction made from codeine-based cough medicine.
At the time of his death, Higgins’ plane was being searched by police.
Officers eventually found 70 pounds of marijuana, six bottles of prescription codeine cough syrup, and several weapons, including two 9mm pistols, a .40-caliber pistol, a high-capacity ammunition magazine and metal-piercing bullets.
Witnesses say Juice WRLD swallowed several pills during the search, which were believed to be Percocet.
Several sources familiar with the case claim Higgins swallowed the pills in order to prevent police from finding them, but suffered a seizure as a result of the abnormally large dose.
Officers on the scene administered two doses of Narcan and were able to temporarily revive the rapper.
He was rushed to Advocate Christ Medical Center in nearby Oak Lawn, conscious, but bleeding heavily from the mouth and nose.
Higgins passed away shortly after arriving at the hospital.
Our thoughts go out to Higgins’ family during this extraordinarily difficult time.
