A convicted paedophile seen chugging a bottle of "cloudy" liquid in court as he was found guilty was later discovered dead in his cell.
Edward LeClair appeared in court on August 11, charged with five counts of child sexual assault against one victim, which took place in 2016 according to Denton County Jail, Texas, US.
The 57-year-old was waiting to hear his fate alongside his attorney, but immediately reached for his water bottle and began "throwing it back" when the first count was read out and he was found guilty.
His lawyer Jamie Beck claimed he thought the sex offender's behaviour was odd, but believed it was just his way of dealing with the verdict.
However, when bailiffs later decided to check on LeClair he was found grey and unresponsive and was rushed to hospital.
Beck told WFAA : "The jury comes in and takes a seat, the defendant and his counsel stand.
"The jury hands the verdict to the judge, which she then starts to read. It's during this process that he had a bottle of water with him at the counsel table, and he chugged it.
"It wasn't like he was just taking sips of water. He was literally throwing it back, so to speak."
Despite the medical intervention efforts, LeClair was pronounced dead at hospital and his water bottle has now been taken as evidence, while investigators wait for the results of an autopsy.
Beck added: "Our investigator noticed him chug the water. He told the bailiff he might want to go check on him. The bailiff did.
"He was unconscious in the holding cell. Shortly after entering the holdover cell, he started vomiting, and emergency services were called."
Tarrant County Medical Examiner’s Office will conduct the autopsy to establish the cause of death while Texas rangers investigate the incident.
