Crime & Safety

Coroner: Whitney Houston Found Face-Down in Hotel Tub, 'White Substance' Nearby

She is believed to have been submerged for an hour before being discovered by an assistant.

Updated 2:45 a.m. Thursday:

According to Associated Press:

Whitney Houston was found face-down in her hotel bathtub with cocaine in her system and drug paraphernalia on the bathroom counter nearby, investigators revealed in the singer's final autopsy report released Wednesday.

The coroner's report states that investigators discovered in the bathroom a "spoon with a white crystal-like substance in it," as well as a white powdery substance in a drawer and on a mirror. The report does not identify the substances as cocaine, although toxicology tests found the drug in Houston's system.

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Houston is believed to have been submerged in the bathtub for at least an hour before an assistant discovered her.

To read the AP report via The New York Times, click here.

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A spoon with a "white crystal-like substance" and remnants of a "white powdery substance" were found in the Beverly Hills hotel room where singer Whitney Houston died, according to a coroner's report issued Wednesday. 

Houston, 48, drowned in a bathtub at the on Feb. 11.

A coroner's official previously was quoted in news reports as saying that no cocaine was recovered from Houston's hotel room.

Lt. Mark Rosen, a spokesman for the Beverly Hills Police Department, told the Los Angeles Times that the department's investigation had been on hold pending release of the final coroner's report. "We can't finalize the case until we see what's in the report," Rosen told The Times. "We have to review the document and we will take the appropriate course of action based on the coroner's findings."

Coroner's officials said previously that cocaine use and heart disease contributed to her accidental death, with evidence that the singer used cocaine shortly before she slipped under the water in the tub.

According to the coroner's office report released today, an ashtray with multiple cigarette butts was found on the bathroom counter of Houston's hotel room. In addition, the report stated:

"Located on the south portion of the counter was a small spoon with a white crystal like substance in it and a rolled up piece of white paper.... Located on the north portion of the counter was a bottle of prescription medications, and a ripped open small plastic bag.... 

"Located in the top drawer, in the north side of the counter were remnants of a white powdery substance, and a portable mirror on a base," the report stated. "On the bottom of that base were more remnants of a white powdery substance."

The bathtub had 12 to 13 inches of water in it, and the bathroom floor was covered with water, according to the report, which also notes that a "plethora" of prescription medication bottles was also collected in the hotel room.

— City News Service contributed to this report.

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