Porn star Olivia Lua found dead in rehab: Possible cause of death revealed

The adult industry in the US suffered another shocking blow after porn star Olivia Lua was found dead on Friday (19 January) at a rehab in Las Vegas. She was 23.

Lua is the fifth actress to die suddenly as the shadow of death continues to grip the American porn entertainment industry. Shyla Stylez, August Ames, Yuri Luv and Olivia Nova died in the last three months.

Lua's agency, LA Direct Models, issued a statement confirming her death and expressed their grief about the loss. In the lengthy statement, the agency also revealed the possible cause of death of the 23-year-old, who joined them in April 2017.

"Much comment has recently been made on the number of adult stars have passed in the last year and with great sadness, we must inform that the list has grown longer. We learned today that Olivia Lua passed away this morning—may she rest in peace," the statement read.

It added that the actress was going through personal challenges that made her enter a rehab, where she stayed for nearly three months.

Lua, a native of Philadelphia, was planning to make a return to porn movies in January but, she relapsed and entered another rehab in Las Vegas a week ago, where she was found dead. The agency suspects that she took a "volume of prescription drugs" along with alcohol or recreational drugs, causing an overdose leading to death.

"We learned today that she had returned to a different facility in West Hollywood after a relapse, approximately a week ago, at which she was found deceased this morning. Family and close friends relate they had deep concern at the volume of prescription drugs prescribed to Olivia and the danger this posed her, if this was mixed with recreational drugs or alcohol. It is believed this to be the cause of her passing," the company reportedly said.

Lua is the second model from the agency to die within a fortnight. Nova, 20, died on 7 January.

The eerie similarity of the actress' name caught the attention of many but, the agency addressed the concerns in their public statement that read: "We at Direct Models obviously can barely believe we are issuing a notice such as this, not once but twice, in such a short space of time. The coincidence that both of these models' chosen stage names is Olivia is solely that and they otherwise have no connection—we actually do not think they had ever met."

Lua, has performed in almost 30 adult movies throughout 2017. She accidentally opted for a career in the porn industry after giving her friend, porn star Cadence Lux, a ride to a set.