GLEE star Mark Salling has died of an apparent suicide at age 35.

The actor’s lawyer, Michael J. Proctor, confirmed the news in a statement to EW.

“I can confirm that Mark Salling passed away early this morning,” Mr Proctor said. “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 cause and manner of the death are unknown but TMZ reported that the actor who played bad boy Noah ‘Puck’ Puckerman in Glee was found dead at the Los Angeles River in Sunland, near where he lived.

Salling was awaiting sentencing after pleading guilty to possessing more than 50,000 images of underage children.

He was due to be sentenced in March and had struck a plea deal whereby he would receive between four to seven years in prison.

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