NORRISTOWN —- A suburban Philadelphia coroner says a preliminary investigation has found prescription drugs in the system of the late Cardinal Anthony Bevilacqua, but more tests are needed to determine the amount.

Coroner Walter Hofman said Tuesday that it will take several weeks to determine whether the amount of drugs in the 88-year-old cardinal’s system matched the prescribed dosage.

Bevilacqua, spiritual leader of the archdiocese’s 1.5 million Roman Catholics from 1988 to 2003, died Jan. 31. Officials said he was suffering from dementia and cancer.

He was laid to rest without an autopsy, but District Attorney Risa Vetri Ferman said she wanted to end any speculation given that Bevilacqua’s death came a day after he was ruled competent to testify at an aide’s trial.

By The Associated Press