The official cause of death for former AEW star PAC has been revealed weeks after he was found unresponsive inside a rental car near Chicago O’Hare International Airport. A spokesperson for the Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office confirmed that Benjamin Satterley, the wrestler known to fans as PAC, died from bronchial asthma, with his death officially classified as natural.
The finding was first reported by the New York Post on October 16, 2026, and has since been corroborated by multiple wrestling news outlets, including Wrestling Headlines, eWrestlingNews, Ringside News and Wrestling Inc. Each outlet cited the Medical Examiner’s Office spokesperson as the source of the ruling, bringing a measure of closure to a story that had generated significant concern and speculation within the wrestling community since Satterley’s passing.
Satterley, who performed under the ring name PAC in AEW and was previously known as Neville during his run with WWE, was 40 years old at the time of his death. He had become one of the most respected in-ring performers of his generation, known for a high-flying, technically precise style that earned him acclaim across multiple promotions prior to and during his AEW tenure.
The ruling of natural causes resulting from bronchial asthma closes the official medical component of the investigation into his death. The Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office is the governmental body responsible for determining cause and manner of death in cases within its jurisdiction, and its classification carries legal and official weight in how the death is recorded.
No further details regarding the circumstances surrounding his discovery near O’Hare International Airport have been disclosed beyond what has already been reported, and none of the supplied sources indicate any additional findings, contributing factors, or statements from family, representatives, or AEW itself regarding the ruling. As more information becomes available from official channels, further reporting will follow.
