Paul Di'Anno's family release his cause of death

On October 21 it was announced that former Iron Maiden vocalist Paul Di'Anno had passed away at the age of 66. Today, his family issued the below statement on the cause of death:

"Dear fans and friends, we have received permission from Paul's family to bring you the news of Paul's cause of death, after the results of the autopsy have been received. His sisters Cheryl and Michelle confirmed the following: 'Basically he had a tear in the sac around the heart and blood has filled inside it from the main aorta artery and that has caused the heart to stop.' Paul's death was instantaneous and hopefully painless. May he rest in peace.

This weekend, an In Memoriam show was held at Underworld Camden, where many of Paul's fans, friends, colleagues and family members came. With a magnificent musical set, his musical colleagues said a worthy farewell to their friend."

Paul Di'Anno was best known as the lead singer of Iron Maiden from 1978 to 1981 and featured on Iron Maiden's self-titled debut and Killers (1981). He also fronted Praying Mantis from 1989 to 1990 and Battlezone on and off between 1985 and 1998. He also had a long solo career under his own name from 1997.