Robert de Niro’s Grandson Was Found Dead Sitting in a Chair – Cause of Death Finally Disclosed

• Robert De Niro’s grandson, Leandro De Niro Rodriguez, died unexpectedly last month.
• Leandro’s death was ruled as an accident last month, but now the cause of his passing has been revealed.
• Robert, whose family was devastated by the loss of Leandro, now has three living grandchildren.

Robert De Niro lost his grandson, Leandro De Niro Rodriguez, on July 2, 2023. Leandro was following a similar career path as Robert and had featured in the 2018 films “A Star is Born” and Cabaret Maxime.”

Leandro was the son of Carlos Rodriguez, an artist, and Drena De Niro. When Drena confirmed the passing of his son, she called him his beautiful sweet angel, whom she didn’t know how she would live without.

Leandro, 19, was found dead sitting in a chair in a New York City apartment on July 2, 2023. The police didn’t find any obvious signs that pointed to the cause of his death. However, they investigated his death as an overdose because they found drugs and drug paraphernalia near his body.

Robert’s grandson was found by a friend who hadn’t spoken with him in a couple of days and had come to check on him. After a month of mourning and speculating on the cause of Leandro’s death, what led to his passing has finally been revealed.

Leandro’s death was initially assumed to be an “accident,” but the New York City Medical Examiner noted that he died from a toxic combination of illicit drugs. The autopsy results showed the system had fentanyl, bromazolam, alprazolam, 7-aminoclonazepam, ketamine, and cocaine at the time of his death.

A woman has also been arrested for allegedly selling fentanyl-laced pills to the late teen. The 20-year-old woman, Sophia Marks, is believed to have warned Leandro about these pills before selling them to him.

Law authorities found texts between Sophia and Leandro concerning the purchase of counterfeit oxycodone and Xanax. The messages were exchanged a few days before Robert’s grandson’s death. Police believe Sophia sold these pills to children as young as 15.

Robert adopted Leandro’s mother, Drena, when she was five years old. Drena is Diahnne Abbott’s daughter from a previous relationship before she married Robert.

Drena had accurately suspected the cause of her son’s death all along. In one of her Instagram posts, she responded to an online user who asked about the cause of Leandro’s death. Drena told the online user that someone sold his son fentanyl-laced pills, knowing that the pills were laced.

She warned people who were still selling and buying pills to stop because now, her son was gone forever. Drena, who was devastated by Leandro’s loss, said her son was the joy in her heart and all that was ever pure and real in her life.

Robert released a statement saying, “I’m deeply distressed by the passing of my beloved grandson, Leo.” He appreciated all the messages of condolences he received. The actor asked the public to give his family privacy as they grieve the loss of Leo.

Over the past one month since Leandro’s death, his mother has been sharing sweet and emotional tributes on Instagram. Drena shares these messages alongside pictures of her son as a teen and as a child.

Exactly one month after Leandro’s death, Drena wrote, “Today marks one whole month without my baby 🥺💔 I think of you and long for you, every minute of every day.” She said her son was kindhearted and beautiful and made many people happy when he was alive.

Drena added that his son’s legacy will be his love and that she missed him so much. She said as each day passed, she got to understand her son better. Leandro was and will always be his mother’s gift.

Leandro’s mother also shared her son’s pictures with his godfather. The two seemed to be on vacation and were having fun as they hung out by the beach. Drena said she would always celebrate her son. She thanked everyone for their prayers, help, and love as the family went through a devastating time.

Carlos also shared a black square on his Instagram account upon the announcement of his son’s death and left the caption blank. Leandro was laid to rest on July 8, 2023. Robert now has three living grandchildren after he lost Leandro.

Robert has four grandchildren from his oldest children. However, the actor lost Leandro. Robert adopted Leandro’s mother, Drena, when she was five years old. Drena is Diahnne Abbott’s daughter from a previous relationship before she married Robert.

In 1976, Robert and Diahnne welcomed a son, Raphael, who is the father to the actor’s other three grandchildren. Raphael has a son as well as two daughters, with his ex-wife Claudine De Matos.

Robert’s son tried to get into Hollywood fully but only took part in small acting roles in movies such as “Love Streams” and “Raging Bull” before getting into real estate. Raphael’s son is Nicholas, while his daughters are Ella and Alexandria.

Other Robert kids have no children. The actor is a father to twin sons who he welcomed via a surrogate with his former girlfriend, Toukie Smith. The twins, Julian and Aaron, were born in 1995, and just a year later, Toukie and Robert broke up.

Robert and his wife, Grace Hightower, welcomed two kids together, Elliot and Helen. The couple divorced after 20 years of marriage. People assumed Helen would be Robert’s last kid, but at the age of 79, the actor shocked the world when he and his girlfriend, Tiffany Chen, welcomed a daughter, Gia.

Today, Robert is a father to seven children and grandfather to four grandchildren, with three living after Leandro’s death. The actor has immense pride in his big and unconventional family and consistently shows up for his kids and grandkids.