Hollywood actor Mark Salling, who played a supporting role in the TV series 'Glee', died of unknown causes at the age of 35. His attorney announced the news of the actor's passing on Tuesday, merely weeks before he was to appear in court in March for the sentencing on a child pornography case.
Salling's attorney Michael Proctor refused to comment on reports by TMZ that the death had been ruled as an apparent suicide by law enforcement officials. He has not provided the cause of the actor's death yet. The incident happened in Los Angeles.
"I can confirm that Mark Salling passed away early this morning," said Proctor, in a statement. According to reports, the police and Los Angeles County coroner's office confirmed that they had found a body in LA but could not identify it immediately.
Salling was arrested in 2015 on child pornography charges after his girlfriend reported to the police that the actor had shown her child pornography on his computer, says the US Department of Justice. On December 18, the accused pleaded guilty to a federal charge of possessing child pornography. He also admitted to downloading about 25,000 sexual images of minors on his computer.
Salling was scheduled to appear in court on March 7 for his case's sentencing. He had been allowed to remain free till then. According to the plea agreement between Salling and the prosecutors, he was facing a jail sentence of four to seven years, said the Justice Department.
His sudden death has shocked people around the world. "Mark was a gentle and loving person, a person of great creativity, who was doing his best to atone for some serious mistakes and errors of judgment," said Proctor.
Another Glee actor Cory Monteith died of a toxic heroin and alcohol combination in a Vancouver hotel on July 13, 2013, when he was 31 years old. The actor, who played Finn Hudson on Glee, had a long history of substance abuse since his teenage.
Mark Salling played the role of Puck in Glee. His character was a football player and a bully who changed after joining the glee club at his high school. Salling appeared on the show between 2009 and 2015.
He has also been seen in TV shows and movies like 'Walker, Texas Ranger', 'Rocky Road', 'The X Factor', 'The Graveyard', etc.
After Salling's death, many netizens expressed negative comments about him and his deeds. His fellow Glee cast member Tim Davis has come to his defense and tweeted against the people spewing hate at the late actor.
Check out the social media posts of Salling's other co-stars:
