Leandro De Niro Rodriguez's cause of death revealed as accidental drug overdose

Robert De Niro's grandson Leandro De Niro Rodriguez died last month from an accidental drug overdose, according to the New York City's medical examiner.

The 19-year-old's cause of death was determined to be the "toxic effects of fentanyl, bromazolam, alprazolam, 7-aminoclonazepam, ketamine, and cocaine," the agency confirmed to USA TODAY on Wednesday.

De Niro Rodriguez's mother, actress Drena De Niro, posted an Instagram statement on Wednesday saying "there’s been a lot of misunderstanding and misrepresentation of facts that I as his mother can not sit by and not speak up about."

In response to the "trolling and randoms who have nothing better to do than spread vitriol and pain to people who are already managing more than their share of heartache," Drena De Niro shared details of what she believes led to her son's death in a six-slide text post.

She alleged Leandro was sold fentanyl-laced counterfeit pills and called for increased awareness of the epidemic involving "mental health and addiction and fentanyl."

Drena De Niro hopes son's death 'will bring attention to a much bigger problem'

De Niro continued in her post, "My son suffered tremendously through the pandemic as maybe many of your kids had but sadly addiction took over in the last year and eventually killed him."

"I will say that as long as we keep blaming the addict and person suffering mental illness we are going to continue to see more of this," she shared. "Hopefully the publicity his very sad death has garnered will bring attention to a much bigger problem and to all the other beautiful young lives that are being snuffed out way too soon and senselessly."

More than 932,000 people have died in the U.S. since 1999 from a drug overdose, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Leandro's mom, Drena De Niro: 'You were so deeply loved'

Drena De Niro shared the news of her son's death on social media on July 2.

"I don’t know how to live without you but I’ll try to go on and spread the love and light that you so made me feel in getting to be your mama," she wrote in the caption. "You were so deeply loved and appreciated and I wish that love alone could have saved you."

In the comments section of a post in which Drena De Niro shared a joint statement from her and her father Robert De Niro, she responded to someone who asked how Leandro died.

"Someone sold him fentanyl laced pills that they knew were laced yet still sold them to him," she replied, adding, "So for all these people still ... selling and buying this (expletive), my son is gone forever."

Robert De Niro said he was "deeply distressed by the passing of my beloved grandson Leo" in a statement that his representative, Stan Rosenfield, shared with USA TODAY at the time. "We’re greatly appreciative of the condolences from everyone. We ask that we please be given privacy to grieve our loss of Leo."

Arrest made in connection with Leandro De Niro Rodriguez's death

Over a week after De Niro Rodriguez died, a 20-year-old woman was arrested on federal narcotics charges and accused of selling the drugs that led to his death, a law enforcement official told The Associated Press.

Sofia Haley Marks was arrested July 13 on three counts of narcotics distribution stemming from the sale of drugs to De Niro Rodriguez, the law enforcement official said. The official was not authorized to discuss details of the investigation publicly and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.

The New York Post and ABC News also reported the arrest, citing law enforcement sources.

Marks appeared in Manhattan federal court the following day and agreed to remain behind bars until she requested bail at a later date.

Contributing: Naledi Ushe and Anika Reed, USA TODAY

Arrest made: Woman accused of selling drugs to Leandro De Niro Rodriguez

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For treatment referrals for those facing mental and/or substance use disorders, you can reach out to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration's National Helpline 24/7 at 800-662-HELP (4357) — or 800-487-4889 (TTY) — which offers English and Spanish options. Their online treatment locator can be found at https://findtreatment.gov.

For the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, text 988.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Robert De Niro's grandson's cause of death was accidental overdose