Questions surround death of Presley Gerber, model and son of Cindy Crawford
Presley Gerber, model and son of Cindy Crawford, has died at the age of 27 in a Los Angeles rehab facility. TMZ executive producer Michael Babcock joins ‘America’s Newsroom’ to discuss the ongoing investigation into Gerber’s death as a suspected overdose. The tragedy follows Gerber’s previous public statements regarding his mental health and substance abuse struggles.
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Cindy Crawford, Rande Gerber and Kaia Gerber are remembering their late son and brother, Presley Walker Gerber, as a “sweet, beautiful soul” in heartbreaking tributes shared weeks after his death.
“Presley Walker Gerber. July 2, 1999—September 20, 2026,” Crawford wrote on Instagram, alongside a photo of her son.
“We are beyond heartbroken to lose our beloved son and brother. We feel so blessed to have had Presley in our lives for 27 years,” she continued. “He is a sweet, beautiful soul who loved and is loved, now and forever.”
Crawford praised Presley for “how he showed up in the world, with kindness and vulnerability” and thanked the public for supporting the family since the devastating loss.
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Presley Gerber died Sept. 20. He was 27. (WWD
“We are grateful for the outpouring of love and support from so many who know and love our family and even strangers who feel our pain,” the model wrote. “Til we meet again our sweet boy. We love you forever, Mom, Dad and Kaia.”
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Kaia, Presley’s younger sister, shared her own tribute on Instagram, describing her brother as her “ultimate teacher,” “best buddy” and “great protector.”
Presley Gerber was the only son of Cindy Crawford and Rande Gerber.(Alberto Rodriguez/Variety
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“I don’t have the words,” Kaia wrote. “And maybe the tiny mercy is that we didn’t need them all along. Words fail and words subtract and words summarize and words always lack truth.”
“You know how much i loved being your sister: it has always been, and will forever be, my favorite thing about myself. i came into this world with a white-knuckle grip around you. i had more love for you than i knew what to do with. and now that it has nowhere obvious to go, i’m certain it’s going to swallow me whole.”
“you believed — always believed — in people. you met cruelty not with anger, but with confusion. and curiosity. you believed people were inherently good because, presley, you are inherently good.”
Kaia recalled being scared to get her ears pierced when the two were younger.
“i got scared before getting my ears pierced, so you went first. you always went first. but when i held the earring they took from your body, all i could think was: that belongs to you.”
Rande Gerber, Kaia Gerber, Cindy Crawford and Presley Gerber attend The Fashion Awards 2018 in partnership with Swarovski at Royal Albert Hall on Dec. 10, 2018, in London, England
“and i really f—ing wish you hadn’t gone first this time.”
In another passage, Kaia said she was still learning how to be Presley’s sister “in a world that I can’t reach for you in.”
“I don’t know how to do that yet,” she wrote.
She ended the tribute with a series of heartbreaking declarations.
“My darling brother. I do adore you,” Kaia wrote. “I love my brother. My brother is dead.”
“And this party sucks so bad without you, prez,” she added.
Gerber died Sept. 20 at age 27 while staying at a rehabilitation facility, according to records from the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner.
Presley Gerber, Cindy Crawford’s son, died Sept. 20, 2026. He was 27.(Paul Archuleta)
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The model’s cause of death was “deferred,” according to online records from the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner.
The medical examiner told Fox News Digital that “the investigation is still ongoing and there is limited information available.”
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Santa Monica Police Department officials are investigating the death as “a suspected overdose,” according to a release from the department.
A representative for the family told Fox News Digital, “The family is asking for privacy during this very difficult and painful time.”
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Months before his death, Presley Gerber shared a raw look at his battle with addiction and the treatment he hoped would help him find his way back to himself.
In March, the model posted a video of himself preparing to undergo an “ibogaine flood dose,” a psychedelic treatment, at a wellness clinic in Cancún, Mexico.
According to Stanford Medicine, ibogaine is a naturally occurring psychedelic derived from the root bark of the Tabernanthe iboga shrub. It has “gained interest from the medical and scientific communities for its potential to treat opioid and cocaine addiction, and research has suggested that it increases signaling of several important molecules within the brain, some of which have been linked to drug addiction and depression.”
Kaia Gerber, Rande Gerber, model Cindy Crawford and Presley Gerber attend Rock4EB! 2015 with Ed Sheeran and David Spade on Nov. 15, 2015, in Malibu, California.(Todd Williamson/ for EB Kids)
The treatment is legal in some countries, but not in the United States.
“Quiet moment before everything changed,” Presley Gerber wrote in the Instagram caption. “I was absolutely terrified, and I knew I would be again if I ever had to face something like this.”
Gerber said letting go of control was difficult, but he trusted “there was something bigger than me guiding it.”
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“I knew why I was there. I faced what I had been running from, and somewhere in all of it, I started finding my way back to myself,” he wrote.
He also said he was “praying it’s the last time” he would need to return for treatment.
Presley Gerber’s post was one of several instances in which he publicly documented his recovery journey. In recent years, he had spoken candidly about depression, panic attacks, addiction and the challenges of seeking treatment.
During a 2023 episode of the “Studio 22” podcast, Presley Gerber discussed his experiences with depression and other mental health challenges.
Rande Gerber, Cindy Crawford and Presley Walker Gerber attend Chanel Dinner Celebrating our Majestic Oceans, A Benefit for NRDC on June 2, 2018, in Malibu, California. (Stefanie Keenan/WireImage)
“[Mental health] is an issue. It is such a big part of my life. It’s a 24/7 job, and there’s so much to it,” he said.
“That’s really what I want to do is help people, whether you’re depressed, you’re struggling with something that is having a negative effect on your body,” he continued. “I mean it could be anything, and there’s no judgment.”
Gerber said he hoped his experiences could help other people avoid making similar mistakes.
“I’ve seen a lot of stuff, and I’ve learned a lot of things,” he said. “What I hope I can do is have made the mistakes for some other people, so they don’t have to make the same mistakes that I made.”
He also explained why he wanted to be open about his mental health journey.
“Having struggled with mental health, depression and some other things that come along with that, I think that whether I help one person or a hundred people get out of that place that I was in at one point in my life, that’s all I need to do,” Gerber said.
