Glee Star Mark Salling Found Dead Of Apparent Suicide

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LOS ANGELES (AP/CBS) - Mark Salling, one of the stars of the Fox musical comedy "Glee," has died at age 35.

Salling's lawyer, Michael J. Proctor, tells The Associated Press the actor died Tuesday.

His death comes weeks before the actor was scheduled to be sentenced in federal court on child pornography charges.

Proctor did not reveal the cause of death.

A body was found in the 11900 block of Big Tujunga Canyon Road in Sunland-Tujunga, Los Angeles police confirmed to CBS Los Angeles Tuesday morning.

Law enforcement officials told the Hollywood Reporter the body belongs to Salling. TMZ reports that authorities believe Salling died of suicide.

Salling's family's attorney confirmed the death to CBS2 in a statement, which read:

"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."

The L.A. County coroner's office would not immediately comment on the death.

Salling is best known for his role as Noah "Puck" Puckerman on the now-defunct Fox series "Glee."

Salling pleaded guilty in December to possession of child pornography. Prosecutors say a search of Salling's computer found more than 50,000 images of child porn.

He was scheduled to be sentenced March 7.

(TM and © Copyright 2018 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)