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| Sean Levert |
R&B singer
Sean Levert died on Sunday at the age of 39 at Lutheran Hospital in Cleveland. Levert, the son of
O'Jays singer
Eddie Levert, died after being struck down with an unknown illness while in jail on charges of failure to pay child support. He was a member of the 1980s trio
LeVert with his brother
Gerald Levert, who died in 2006 from an accidental overdose, and friend
Marc Gordon.
According to a report by the
Chicago Sun-Times, Sean Levert was in a Cleveland jail after being arrested for failure to pay $85,000 in child support. Levert was reportedly sentenced last week to 22 months in jail on the charges. Cuyahoga County Jail warden
Kevin McDonough told the press Levert had been suffering from an unknown illness prior to his death, according to
MTV.co.uk.
Guards at the jail were reportedly keeping an eye on Levert while he was sick and because he had been acting oddly. On Sunday, after it was determined he had high blood pressure and was having hallucinations, Levert was taken to Lutheran Hospital, but died shortly after arrival. The cause of his death is unknown at this time and an autopsy has been scheduled.
"There was nothing that would show any of this," McDonough said. "He had an illness while he was here and it turned into an emergency at that time."
In the 1980s, Levert performed with the R&B trio LeVert with his brother Gerald Levert and Marc Gordon. The band had several hits, including "Baby I'm Ready" and "Casanova", which was nominated for a Grammy in 1988. Gerald Levert left the trio and was successful as a solo artist before dying in 2006 of an accidental overdose of prescription and over-the-counter drugs. He was 40 years-old at the time of his death.
Sean Levert had been attempting to reform LeVert with Gordon and a new partner before his arrest, according to the
Associated Press. Levert was arrested and pleaded guilty last week to multiple counts of failure to pay child support for three children between the ages of 11 and 17.
