What really happened to Matt Brown? The newly revealed details are stirring intense reactions online and bringing renewed attention to his life, legacy, and final days

Matt Brown’s official cause of death has been determined.

On Wednesday, June 3, the Okanogan County coroner’s office confirmed to PEOPLE that Matt died by suicide.

“Subsequent immersion in water” and “under the influence of methamphetamine” are both cited as contributing circumstances to his death. He was 42.

Matt Brown
Credit: Matt Brown/Instagram

The Alaskan Bush People star was initially found dead in Washington on Saturday, May 30, according to an Instagram post from his brother, Solomon Isaiah “Bear” Brown. In a prior social media post, Bear, 38, said their family believed that Matt, who had a history of substance abuse and was estranged from his family, had ended his own life.

“They found a body in the river a few hours ago, and it was positively identified as being Matt,” Bear said in his video. “I would have never suspected he would have hurt himself, honestly. He struggled for a long time, as I’ve mentioned, and I worried he was going to end up, like, OD’d or something like that. I didn’t think he would hurt himself.”

“It does look as though the injury is self-inflicted,” Bear continued. “Obviously, the coroner and stuff still has to look at him and stuff, but I thought that y’all guys should know that it is him.”

Bear added that their brother, Noah Brown, was at the scene “and helped them pull [Matt] out of the water,” as well as provide a positive identification. Search efforts had previously been suspended earlier that day.

On Sunday, May 31, Bear and his brother Josh both shared a statement on behalf of their family.

“It is with broken hearts that we share the loss of our beloved son, brother, uncle, and friend, Matthew Brown,” the statement began. “To millions of viewers, Matt was known as one of the original stars of Alaskan Bush People. To us, he was so much more.”

“Matt was intelligent, curious, creative, and endlessly fascinated by the world around him. He was a gifted outdoorsman, fisherman, boatman, artist, and lifelong learner. He loved adventure, nature, and discovering new things. Matt had an extraordinary mind,” the statement said.

“Those who truly knew Matt knew his heart. He was compassionate, generous with his time, and deeply wanted to help others. During periods of sobriety and recovery, he openly shared his struggles with addiction and mental health through his videos and personal outreach. He encouraged others to seek help, offered hope to people fighting similar battles, and reminded them they were not alone. We are incredibly proud of the lives he touched.”

“Matt spent many years battling serious mental health challenges and addiction. Like countless families facing similar circumstances, we experienced periods of hope, recovery, setbacks, heartbreak, and reconciliation. Our Dad, Billy Brown, never stopped believing in Matt’s ability to heal and find peace, and neither did we,” the statement noted.

Billy, the patriarch of the family who found fame on the Discovery Channel’s Alaskan Bush People in 2014, died in 2021 at age 68.

Matt Brown
Credit: Matt Brown/Instagram

The family also acknowledged in their statement that Matt, the oldest of the family’s seven siblings, “was not without mistakes, struggles, and painful chapters. Some of those chapters caused hurt, and we do not minimize that. At the same time, we do not believe any person’s life should be defined solely by their lowest moments.”

“When we think of Matt, we will remember the young man who loved the wilderness, could navigate rough waters, draw for hours, lose himself in learning, make us laugh unexpectedly, and dream bigger than most people ever dared,” the statement concluded. “He was imperfect. He was human. He was deeply loved. And he will be missed beyond words.”