Support for LAist comes from
Local and national news, NPR, things to do, food recommendations and guides to Los Angeles, Orange County and the Inland Empire
Stay Connected
Listen

Share This

This is an archival story that predates current editorial management.

This archival content was written, edited, and published prior to LAist's acquisition by its current owner, Southern California Public Radio ("SCPR"). Content, such as language choice and subject matter, in archival articles therefore may not align with SCPR's current editorial standards. To learn more about those standards and why we make this distinction, please click here.

News

Man Who Spent $100,000 To Look Like Justin Bieber Died Of A Drug Overdose

Congress has cut federal funding for public media — a $3.4 million loss for LAist. We count on readers like you to protect our nonprofit newsroom. Become a monthly member and sustain local journalism.


The L.A. County coroner's office has revealed that a Justin Bieber lookalike found dead in an L.A. area motel nearly a year ago died due to a drug overdose. Tobias Strebel, 35, also known as Toby Sheldon, was found dead in a North Hills Motel 6 in August of 2015. Strebel was known for spending over $100,000 on plastic surgery to look like pop star Justin Bieber, appearing on reality shows like Botched and My Strange Addiction.

The coroner’s office states that Strebel took pain killers, anti-anxiety drugs and alcohol, resulting in a fatal overdose, the L.A. Times reports. Diazapam and temazepam were found in the room in a bottle wrongly labeled Vitamin C. Toxicology tests showed traces of Xanax, Valium, Ativan, codeine and morphine in Strebel's liver.

Strebel grew up in Nuremberg, Germany and came to L.A. to become a songwriter. His mother still lived in Germany at the time of his death, making it hard for authorities to get in touch with her. This, combined with the fact that Strebel's body was partly decomposed at the time of discovery, led to delays in identifying his body. The toxicology report was not finalized until May.

Strebel had been reported missing prior to the discovery of his body, and investigators at the time suspected his disappearance might have been related to a recent breakup. Authorities do not suspect foul play in his death, according to TMZ.

As Editor-in-Chief of our newsroom, I’m extremely proud of the work our top-notch journalists are doing here at LAist. We’re doing more hard-hitting watchdog journalism than ever before — powerful reporting on the economy, elections, climate and the homelessness crisis that is making a difference in your lives. At the same time, it’s never been more difficult to maintain a paywall-free, independent news source that informs, inspires, and engages everyone.

Simply put, we cannot do this essential work without your help. Federal funding for public media has been clawed back by Congress and that means LAist has lost $3.4 million in federal funding over the next two years. So we’re asking for your help. LAist has been there for you and we’re asking you to be here for us.

We rely on donations from readers like you to stay independent, which keeps our nonprofit newsroom strong and accountable to you.

No matter where you stand on the political spectrum, press freedom is at the core of keeping our nation free and fair. And as the landscape of free press changes, LAist will remain a voice you know and trust, but the amount of reader support we receive will help determine how strong of a newsroom we are going forward to cover the important news from our community.

Please take action today to support your trusted source for local news with a donation that makes sense for your budget.

Thank you for your generous support and believing in independent news.

Chip in now to fund your local journalism
A row of graphics payment types: Visa, MasterCard, Apple Pay and PayPal, and  below a lock with Secure Payment text to the right
(
LAist
)

Trending on LAist