Tom Petty died of an accidental drug overdose, his family have revealed in a statement.
Petty was found unconscious in his home in October of last year and died shortly after in hospital.
His wife Dana and his daughter Adria have shared a statement to Facebook writing, “Tom Petty passed away due to an accidental drug overdose as a result of taking a variety of medications.”
As TMZ report, Petty’s autopsy results showed he was on various different pain medications including Fentanyl patches, oxycodone (Oxycontin), temazepam (Restoril), alprazolam (Xanax), citalopram (Celexa), acetyl fentanyl and despropionyl fentanyl.
“We knew before the report was shared with us that he was prescribed various pain medications for a multitude of issues including Fentanyl patches and we feel confident that this was, as the coroner found, an unfortunate accident,” the family wrote.
Before his death, Petty was touring with a fractured hip and was told on the day of his passing that it had, “graduated to a full on break.”
“As a family we recognize this report may spark a further discussion on the opioid crisis and we feel that it is a healthy and necessary discussion and we hope in some way this report can save lives,” Adria and Dana further wrote.
“Many people who overdose begin with a legitimate injury or simply do not understand the potency and deadly nature of these medications.”
The family wrote that they took peace in knowing, “he went painlessly and beautifully exhausted after doing what he loved the most,” after performing with his band for his fans.
“He was extremely proud of that achievement in the days before he passed.”
Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers were touring the US this year, to celebrate the band’s 40th anniversary.
