Green Book Actor Frank Vallelonga Jr. Identified as Dead Body Police Found in the Bronx, Man Arrested

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The body of actor Frank Vallelonga, Jr., was found dead outside of a building in the Bronx earlier this week, the New York Police Department said.

In a news release shared with PEOPLE, the NYPD said that the body has been identified as Vallelonga, known for his role in the 2018 film Green Book. He was 60.

His cause of death has not been released; however, a 35-year-old male, Steven Smith, has been arrested and charged with concealment of a human corpse, the release said.

"The investigation remains ongoing at this time," the NYPD said in the release.

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Officers were first alerted to "an unconscious male" in the Bronx at 3:50 a.m. local time on Monday. At the site, authorities found a male, who was unidentified at the time, "unconscious and unresponsive, on the ground at the location," per the release.

"The male had no obvious signs of trauma observed. EMS responded to the location and pronounced the male deceased at the scene," officers said, noting that the medical examiner will later rule on how he died.

According to The New York Post, authorities said Vallelonga's body was thrown out of a car and left outside of a sheet-metal manufacturing factory.

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Police sources told the outlet that based on an initial investigation, it is likely Vallelonga died from an overdose.

A spokesperson for the NYPD also told The Post that surveillance video captured Smith pushing the late actor's body out of a car. He also allegedly admitted to the act during an interrogation for an unrelated case, per the outlet.

However, Smith denied any involvement in Vallelonga's death and told authorities, "That dude was dead already," according to News 10 in Albany, New York. He added that he had never met Vallelonga.

It was not immediately clear if Smith has a lawyer who can comment on his behalf.

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Vallelonga's father was actor Tony Lip, born Frank Vallelonga. Lip died in 2013 and appeared in The Sopranos, 1997's Donnie Brasco, The Godfather, and starred in Goodfellas, according to Variety. Vallelonga, Jr.'s big break came when he played his uncle, Rudy Vallelonga, in Green Book. The movie won an Academy Award for Best Picture in 2019.

Vallelonga, Jr.'s acting credits include appearances in The Neighborhood and The Birthday Cake.

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Per The Post, Vallelonga, Jr., had teamed up with his brother Nick Vallelonga, who wrote Greek Book, to produce a new film titled That's Amore before his death.