Coroner releases Aaron Carter's cause of death, says singer accidentally drowned in tub

LOS ANGELES (KTLA/AP) — Singer and rapper Aaron Carter accidentally drowned in his bathtub due to sedatives he'd taken and gas used in spray cleaners he had inhaled, a coroner's report said Tuesday.

Carter, 34, was found unresponsive by a house sitter in a bathtub at his home in Lancaster, California on Nov. 5. The house sitter was told to perform CPR until paramedics arrived on the scene, at which point he was pronounced dead.

The sedative alprazolam, often sold under the brand name Xanax, was found in his system, as was the compressed gas difluoroethane, which the report says is “a gas commonly used as a propellant in air spray cleaners,” which “can induce feelings of euphoria when inhaled."

The two substances made him incapacitated in the tub, and caused the drowning, the report said.

The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Office told Nexstar's KTLA Carter was found unresponsive in his tub by his house sitter. The house sitter was told to perform CPR until paramedics arrived on scene, at which point he was declared deceased.

The autopsy was performed the day after Carter's death, but the results were withheld for toxicology tests, which often take months.

Carter rose to fame as a child star, first as a singer (and the younger brother of the Backstreet Boys’ Nick Carter) and later as an actor in film and television shows like “Lizzie McGuire” and “7th Heaven.”

Carter battled addiction for many years, facing legal troubles and entering rehabilitation while continuing with his music career, according to E!, which also aired the reality show “House of Carters” starring Aaron and Nick.

In September, he entered rehab for the fifth time so he could regain custody of his infant son, Prince, the Los Angeles Times reported.