Rodney King Dead At 47

Rodney King, and fiancée Cynthia Kelly

Rodney King, the man whose brutal beating by members of the LAPD sparked the LA riots om March 3, 1991 following a high-speed car chase after he had refused to pull over was found dead at the bottom of his swimming pool in California on early Sunday morning.

He was 47 year old.

King was discovered by his fiancée Cynthia Kelley in Rialto, California in the early hour this morning. She alledgely told friends that King has been drinking all day and he smoked marijuana at some point, before she went to bed at 2:00am.

According to TMZ, Kelley was woken up by the sound of King, who was naked, screaming and banging on the glass in the backyard. Then she heard a splash and discovered him in the swimming pool. Kely made a 911 call at around 5:26am PT.

Police officers attempted to revive King, but he was pronounced dead at 6:11am PT.

There were no initial signs of foul play and police were conducting a drowning investigation.

Rodney King swimmingpool Rodney King Dead At 47

King became famous in 1991 when he was the victim of police brutality at the hands of the LAPD.

The attack was secretly videotaped by a bystander George Holliday and beamed around the world (video below). The four officers involved in the incident – Theodore Briseno, Laurence Powell, Timothy Wind and Sgt. Stacey Koon – were acquitted the following year, which led to the infamous LA Riots.

King was later awarded $3.8 million in damages.