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Home / Entertainment

Elvis Presley's grandson Benjamin Keough's death: Neighbours heard screams, pleas at house

Daily Mail
13 Jul, 2020 07:11 PM6 mins to read

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Elvis Presley's grandson, Benjamin Keough, has died suddenly at the age of 27. Video / AP

A distressed woman was heard screaming "don't do it" at the home of Elvis Presley's grandson, who died in a suspected suicide.

Police said Lisa Marie Presley's son Benjamin Keough, 27, died at his family's luxury Calabasas, California mansion.

And a neighbour exclusively told the Daily Mail they heard the residents of the $1.8 million property partying at 1am, before a woman was heard screaming loudly, "Don't do it", at 3.30am.

Another resident of the street said that Los Angeles Sheriff's Department officers arrived at the five-bedroom house in the exclusive Calabasas Park Estates at around 6am on Sunday local time.

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The neighbour, who asked not to be named, overheard police interviewing a distraught woman, believed to be Benjamin's girlfriend, in the backyard of the house, which boasts a swimming pool and mountain views.

"I could hear somebody speaking really loud in the backyard. I looked outside and I saw what appeared to be his girlfriend outside talking to police, and she was pretty hysterical saying ''I can't believe it','' the neighbour said.

"She just kept swearing and saying, ''I can't believe it, I can't believe it'.' She was saying 'I can't believe he would do that to himself'.'

"She said, 'The family's going to hate me' and 'They're going to blame me'. I think she was feeling guilty for it happening... but I don't want to speculate (as to) what caused it.

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"That was around 6.30-7am. They were out there for about an hour talking."

The neighbour said they believed the woman - who they had seen coming and going from the home with Benjamin regularly - was his girlfriend and the couple had been dating for at least two years.

The resident said Benjamin's mother, Lisa Marie, was not in the house at the time of the death and they had not seen her at the property for several weeks.

But other neighbours saw the Presley family gathering at the house later Sunday, after news of the suspected suicide emerged.

Bereaved Lisa Marie's representative said: "She is completely heartbroken, inconsolable and beyond devastated but trying to stay strong for her 11-year-old twins and her oldest daughter Riley. She adored that boy. He was the love of her life.:

Residents of the guard gated Calabasas community – which was cordoned off by police after the shooting on Sunday – said the family kept to themselves.

"They're very private,' a neighbour said.

"They go out of their way to turn around and not even wave or anything. Not that they're rude, they just don't want anybody to know who they are."

Another neighbour Alexander Freiberg, 67, who lives across the street from Keough, says the "secluded" and "private" community has been left shocked by the death.

"What happened is a tragedy and it took everybody by surprise. Everybody is shocked, may his soul rest in peace," he said.

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The Sheriff's Department issued a statement Sunday saying Elvis' only grandson had died after suffering "one gunshot wound to the upper torso".

"Los Angeles County Sheriff's Homicide Bureau detectives are continuing their death investigation of a male White adult in his 20s, who was discovered [at] Alexandra Court, Calabasas, on Sunday, July 12, 2020 at approximately 6:30 a.m," the statement said.

"Detectives have learned that deputies assigned to Malibu/Lost Hills Sheriff's Station responded to the location regarding a 'rescue response' call.

"Upon their arrival, they located the victim suffering from one gunshot wound to the upper torso. The victim was pronounced dead at the scene."

Lisa Marie had commented on her son's 'uncanny' resemblance to his grandfather Elvis Presley.
Lisa Marie had commented on her son's 'uncanny' resemblance to his grandfather Elvis Presley.

An official could be seen outside the mansion on Sunday while police and a coroner's vehicle were parked nearby.

Benjamin was the son of musician Danny Keough, who married Lisa Marie in 1988 and divorced her in 1994.

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His mother, who has three other children, had previously spoken of her son's similarity to her dad Elvis, calling their resemblance "uncanny".

"Ben does look so much like Elvis," Lisa Marie said in a 2012 interview with CMT.
"Everybody was grabbing him for a photo because it is just uncanny. Sometimes I am overwhelmed when I look at him.'

Elvis' daughter went on to marry Michael Jackson, Nicholas Cage and finally in 2006 music producer Michael Lockwood, with whom she had twin girls.

Benjamin grew up with his mother and Lockwood in Calabasas.

His mother's latest marriage ended in an acrimonious divorce. She filed for the split in 2016 and the following year accused Lockwood of possessing hundreds of images of child pornography on his computer and took his daughters into protective custody.

Neighbours said the couple now share custody of the twin girls, 11-year-old Finley and Harper Lockwood.

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Benjamin's sister, actress and model Riley Keough, has embraced the limelight from her famous family, starring in Magic Mike, Mad Max: Fury Road, and Starz TV show The Girlfriend Experience. But little was publicly known about her more reclusive brother.

Riley, 31, told UK newspaper The Guardian that she and Benjamin had a mixed upbringing, split between their mother's lavish and star-studded lifestyle and their father's modest living.

WHERE TO GET HELP:
If you are worried about your or someone else's mental health, the best place to get help is your GP or local mental health provider. However, if you or someone else is in danger or endangering others, call police immediately on 111.
OR IF YOU NEED TO TALK TO SOMEONE ELSE:
• 0800 543 354 (0800 LIFELINE) or free text 4357 (HELP) (available 24/7)
• https://www.lifeline.org.nz/services/suicide-crisis-helpline
• YOUTHLINE: 0800 376 633
• NEED TO TALK? Free call or text 1737 (available 24/7)
• KIDSLINE: 0800 543 754 (available 24/7)
• WHATSUP: 0800 942 8787 (1pm to 11pm)
• DEPRESSION HELPLINE: 0800 111 757 or TEXT 4202

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