Thomas 'Ty' Pickens, the 21-year-old grandson of wealthy oil and gas titan T. Boone Pickens, died of acute heroin intoxication, the Tarrant County Medical Examiner has found.
This January, Pickens was taken to a hospital in Fort Worth, Texas from an off-campus apartment in a private vehicle. A student who found Pickens said that the victim wouldn't wake up and that he had probably been dead for several hours.
Sources told NBC5 that an overdose was thought to be the cause of death after witnesses told police that Pickens injected heroin and took the prescription pill Xanax.
A medical examiner has determined Thomas 'Ty' Pickens, the grandson of oil tycoon T. Boone Pickens, died of acute heroin intoxication
Now those suspicions have been confirmed, WFAA reports.
Pickens was a junior at Texas Christian University where he was majoring in strategic communications.
An unnamed young man answered the door at the condo where Pickens was taken to the hospital from and confirmed that he and his cousin - both TCU students - were with Pickens on the night he died.
The student said they had left Pickens alone to go to the store on a Monday and when they returned, he appeared to be sleeping. When Pickens didn't wake up on Tuesday morning, the roommate's cousin drove him to the hospital.
Police searched the condo for drugs later on the next morning, they have yet to decide if they will arrest anyone who may have been involved in the drug use
'Ty’s loss at such a young age is an unspeakable family tragedy for the entire Pickens family and his many friends,' the family said in a statement.
'Ty¿s loss at such a young age is an unspeakable family tragedy for the entire Pickens family and his many friends,' the family said in a statement.
'We mourn his passing and respectfully request that the family be allowed to grieve in private in this time of sorrow.'
His grandfather is worth more than $1.2 billion and spent a lifetime in the oil industry.
Ty's father, Thomas Boon Pickens III, is the industrialist's youngest son.
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At the time of Pickens' death, TCU released a statement saying, 'We are deeply saddened by the loss of this member of our community and our hearts and thoughts are with Ty's family at this time,' Dr. Cavins Tull, TCU vice chancellor for student affairs, said, according to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
A police spokeswoman confirmed 'there is no evidence of foul play, so we are not investigating this as a homicide or suicide or anything at this point.'
'We are just awaiting the results of the autopsy, and then we will proceed from there,' said Fort Worth police spokeswoman Sharron Neal, according to the Dallas Morning News.
Ty's friends took to Facebook to express their grief over his untimely passing.
'Love and miss you Cheese! Never will forget you,' wrote one pal.
'One hell of an angel if you ask me,' the friend also wrote beneath a picture of Ty.
Pickens was a junior at Texas Christian University, majoring in strategic communications.
T. Boone Pickens, who has five children and 12 grandchildren, lives in an opulent mansion in the exclusive suburb of Preston Hollow, Dallas where neighbors include former president George W. Bush, many of the Dallas Cowboys and George Michael. Homes can cost as much as $40 million.
The wealthy industrialist also owns the Mesa Vista, a property worth around $35million set in 68,000 acres in Roberts County, Texas.
The billionaire has his own gulfstream jet which he parks at his private airport in Pampa, Texas and fuels up to take him to Oklahoma State football games.
T. Boone Pickens started his career at Phillips Petroleum before founding Mesa Petroleum in 1956.
The billionaire is currently embroiled in a bitter court battle with his son 58-year-old son Michael Pickens over his blog, 5 Days In Connecticut, in which the younger man denounces his family, accusing them of abuse and theft.
Mr Pickens Sr, who made a $1.4bn fortune buying and selling oil companies, is said to have launched legal proceedings after what began as a blog about Mr Pickens Jr's health problems became more personal and offensive.
Entrepreneur and philanthropist T. Boone Pickens is suing his son Michael for alleged defamation and cyberbullying
T Boone Pickens, seen her with his wife Madeleine Pickens, is suing his son Michael Pickens Sr, on the right
The father, along with three of his children, is said to be suing Mr Pickens Jr over alleged defamation, invasion of privacy, libel, harmful access by computer and extortion.
Court documents are said to show Mr Pickens Sr, universally known as T. Boone Pickens, is concerned about damage to his family's reputation, and accuses his son of lying in a bid to extort $20m out of him.
In the blog, which he began in October last year, Mr Pickens Jr portrays himself as the victim of years of emotional abuse, writing about poor parenting, petty fighting, and drug and alcohol abuse.
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Its author writes: 'I was clinically depressed at age 10.
'I began drinking beer and whiskey when I was 12 - by the time I was 17 I was a drug addict and an alcoholic smoking pot every day before and after school, eating my mother's valium and darvon and snorting cocaine and tripping on LSD.
'I drank until drunk five nights of every week of my life. I lived this way for 40 years - by the time my life imploded I had been physically addicted to Benzodiazepines and Opiates for 10 years.
'I was dead.'
The controversial blog: Michael Pickens Sr's 5 Days In Connecticut blog began last year and soon became inflammatory
Pam Pickens, seen here in a grab from YouTube, is suing her brother Michael with her father, brother Tom and sister Elizabeth
Unimaginable wealth: T Boone Pickens' luxurious Alva Court estate in Preston Hollow is for sale for $7m
Some posts describe Mr Pickens Jr's own drug and alcohol use, but others attack his family, accusing his siblings of drug dependence and stealing from their own mother, and accusing his father of being uncaring and unkind.
The family, which is based in Dallas, accuses Mr Pickens Jr of lying in a bid to extort money from his family.
A written testimony from Mr Pickens Sr quoted in the Daily Telegraph says: 'I am suffering physical manifestations of distress, including elevated blood pressure, which is very unusual for me.
'I am deeply embarrassed by Mike’s statements and actions.'
Meanwhile Mr Pickens Jr's son, also called Michael Pickens, who is not involved in the court battle, told Forbes: 'I love my father dearly, and I know he loves me.
'But this blog stuff is out of control, it’s not accurate in the least.'
Michael Pickens Jr has a long history of substance abuse, and in 2007 he was given probation for fraud. His father paid $1.2m restitution to his victims, and paid for his son to go to rehab.