Scottish singer and actor Darius Danesh’s autopsy showed that he had an undiagnosed heart condition – and had broken his neck in car crash in 2010 – his girlfriend has revealed.
The former Pop Idol star was found dead in his US apartment in Rochester, Minnesota, in August 2022. He was 41 years old.
His cause of death was later ruled as a result of “inhalation of chloroethane”. It’s believed Danesh was using the drug – also known as ethyl chloride – to treat chronic neck pain.
Police said at the time of his death that there were “no signs of intent or suspicious circumstances”. And now his girlfriend Lauren Cheek has revealed that Danesh’s autopsy showed he had broken his neck in a 2010 car crash.
The autopsy also found Danesh’s heart had swelled to twice its normal size. “Darius was living with this heart condition that he didn’t know he had,” she said.
“So many things could have taken him, but this one thing did, and he died in his sleep. His mum told me they only found out after they did the autopsy.”
Speaking to The Sun, Lauren Cheek said: “His heart was twice the size it was supposed to be, which was fitting, because that is genuinely how he was — he had so much love.”
Autopsy documents obtained by the PA news agency in September listed “toxic effects of chloroethane” in addition to “suffocation” as having contributed to his death.
At the time, his family issued a statement that read: “The results of medical examinations have confirmed that Darius’s death was an accident caused by chloroethane, which is used to treat pain and that tragically lead to respiratory arrest.
“Darius was suffering from chronic neck pain following a car accident in 2010. We would like to thank everyone for their love and kindness, and ask that the family’s privacy is maintained during this difficult time.”
