Mark Salling's Family Confirms Death, Said He 'Was Doing His Best'

UPDATE 2:00 PM: Law enforcement sources tell us Salling's death was a suicide by hanging. His body will undergo an autopsy later this week.

11:00 AM: LAPD tells The Blast someone from Salling's family filed a missing persons report at 4 AM, which caused police to actively look for him. However, the discovery of Salling's body did not come from the LAPD search.

10:30 AM: The Blast obtained a statement from the Salling family, who has now been notified of his passing:

"I can confirm that Mark Salling passed away early this morning. 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. He is survived by his mother and father, and his brother. The Salling family appreciates the support they have been receiving and asks for their privacy to be respected."

Mark Salling is dead and authorities are scrambling to get in touch with the late actor's family to notify them of the situation.

According to law enforcement, the former "Glee" star was found Tuesday morning near a Los Angeles River close to his home in Sunland. We're told LAPD responded to the 911 call initially at 8:50 AM, and at 9:47 AM dispatched L.A. City Fire Department to the area near the Big Tujunga Creek where Salling's body was found.

He was pronounced dead at the scene.

The Blast

The 35-year-old Salling's next of kin have not yet been notified and his body remains at the scene while officials continue their investigation.

As The Blast first reported, Salling worked out a plea agreement in October where he agreed to plead guilty to possession of child pornography involving a prepubescent minor.

Salling had agreed to a sentence of 4-7 years in his plea deal.

Mega

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