"CSI Miami" actor Evan Ellingson's death this month was caused by an accidental fentanyl overdose, according to California authorities.
The San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department said police found Ellingson's body in his bedroom in Fontana, California, on Nov. 5.
Ellingson, who was 35, was 19 when he started abusing drugs in a downward spiral that followed the death of his older brother Austin from a drug overdose. He spoke about his struggles when he spent time in 2021 at River's Edge Ranch, a drug and alcohol rehabilitation program.
"When he died from the overdose, it kind of just sent me over the edge," Ellingson said in a testimony posted to YouTube. "I would have given everything that I had in order to be able to get my brother back, and I knew I couldn’t."
Representatives for River’s Edge Ranch, in Lucerne Valley, California, could not be reached for comment Wednesday.
In a statement released after his death on Nov. 6, Ellingson’s family said he was three years sober and had relapsed only after having been prescribed opioids following a dental procedure.
“We already miss Evan and cherish every moment of joy, laughter and love that he brought to us and so many others,” his family said.
Ellingson made his acting debut when he was 3 years old on the soap opera "General Hospital." From 2007 to 2010, he played Kyle Harmon, a troubled boy in the foster care system, on “CSI: Miami.”
Ellingson went on to star in the 2009 movie “My Sister’s Keeper,” but he had not been on camera for more than a decade.
