NEW YORK • Mr Anthony Bourdain did not have narcotics in his body when he died this month, said a French judicial official.

Mr Bourdain, a New York chef, author and TV correspondent whose death shook fans across the world, was found dead on June 8 in a hotel bathroom in Kaysersberg, a small village in the Alsace region of France.

Police at the time ruled his death a suicide by hanging. From an investigative standpoint, the only question left was whether he had any substances in his body.

There was none, save for the trace of a non-narcotic medicine in a therapeutic dose, Mr Christian de Rocquigny, the local prosecutor in charge of the probe, said in a text message to The New York Times.

Mr Bourdain, 61, had been in the village filming his CNN show Parts Unknown with Eric Ripert, chef of Le Bernardin in New York.

Mr Bourdain was cremated in France and his remains and travel belongings were sent to his only sibling - younger brother Christopher.

The family will probably have a small, private ceremony, said his mother Gladys Bourdain.

"He would want as little fuss as possible," she said.

Mrs Bourdain, a former editor at The New York Times, said that she planned to get "Tony" tattooed in small letters on the inside of her wrist next week as a personal memorial to her son. She said she was never a fan of his tattoos, which chronicled his culinary journeys. But she plans to use his tattoo artist.

Ms Kimberly Witherspoon, Mr Bourdain's long-time agent who said she was authorised to speak for his wife Ottavia Bourdain, said there is no plan for a public memorial "at this time".

The couple, who had a daughter together, had been amicably separated since 2016. For nearly two years, Mr Bourdain had been romantically involved with Italian actress and director Asia Argento.

NYTIMES