Drugs & Alcohol

Henry Nicholas III -- the billionaire co-founder of tech giant Broadcom -- was arrested after cops say they found cases of hard drugs in his Las Vegas hotel room, and his mug shot kinda says it all.

Law enforcement sources tell us ... Nicholas couldn't get into his room at the Encore Tuesday and when security assisted, they discovered his girlfirend, Ashley Fargo, was unresponsive with a semi-deflated balloon in her mouth.

We're told paramedics responded and revived Fargo, but security began questioning Nicholas about the balloon and canisters, which he admitted were nitrous oxide.

Our sources say security also noticed 2 cases in the room which needed to be inspected per hotel rules ... because they looked like the kind used to carry weapons.

Instead of weapons, Vegas PD found one case full of marijuana and another full of what appeared to be narcotics. The couple was arrested and booked for felony drug trafficking of multiple controlled substances ... including heroin, cocaine, meth and MDMA. Some of the pills were stamped with Winnie the Pooh.

Nicholas, whose company manufactures semiconductors, has a history of serious legal issues. He faced felony securities fraud and drug distribution charges a decade ago, but they were later dropped.

Fargo is the ex-wife of a Wells Fargo heir, Brian Fargo.

It's becoming more clear now that Demi Lovato will be in treatment for a lengthy period of time ... canceling the remaining shows on her tour.

Demi's Tell Me You Love Me tour dates in Mexico and South America have been scrapped. The news comes on the heels of Demi leaving Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in L.A. just days ago and jetting outside of California to a rehab facility.

The singer was scheduled to perform September 20 and 22 in Mexico but those dates have been canceled. Also canceled is her 6-city tour in Chile, Argentina and Brazil slated for November.

Live Nation and Lotus Productions "wish Demi Lovato the best now and in the future and we hope to see her soon in South America." Refunds will be made available beginning Friday.

TMZ broke the story ... Demi's entered rehab at one of the nation's leading facilities for addiction.

"Superman" actress Margot Kidder died from an intentional drug and alcohol overdose ... according to the Coroner's Office.

The Park County Coroner says Kidder's overdose was self-inflicted. TMZ broke the story ... Kidder, who played Lois Lane in the '70s and '80s "Superman" movies, was found May 13 in her Livingston, MT home. The Coroner has not specified what drugs she took.

Her daughter, Maggie McGuane, told the AP the family wanted to be "open and honest" about the suicide to avoid any "cloud of shame."

Antonio Callaway had gun parts and ammunition in his car (in addition to weed) when he was pulled over in Ohio ... and the police video obtained by TMZ Sports shows it made the lead officer get "real nervous."

The Cleveland Browns rookie WR -- selected in the 4th round of the 2018 NFL Draft -- was pulled over on August 5 at 2:59 AM in Strongsville, Ohio for a routine traffic violation.

The cop smelled weed and searched the car -- finding a small amount of marijuana under the driver's seat ... along with the backstrap of a Glock firearm and several rounds of ammo.

You can see the officer gets very serious when he finds the bullets and gun parts -- ordering Callaway to put his hands in the air and stay put.

Antonio told the officer there was NO gun in the car -- just the parts. The officer eventually verified Callaway's claim, but admits to his partner he got anxious when he found the bullets.

In the end, the officer realizes Antonio is a Cleveland Browns player and admitted he felt bad busting him ... since he didn't appear drunk or high and was super polite during the arrest.

At one point, the officer admits he's excited to watch Callaway play -- saying he's "fast as sh*t."

Shaun Weiss -- who played Goldberg in "The Mighty Ducks" -- has been in a downward spiral for years, according to a longtime friend who is worried about the former child star's fate.

The friend, Marni Gairhan, has known Shaun for more than 13 years, and she tells us Weiss has battled substance abuse issues and picked the wrong crowd to hang with for way too long.

Following Shaun's public intoxication bust over the weekend, friends of the actor feel it's time to push him towards rehab. They fear for Shaun's life and believe he's hit rock bottom -- as his mug shot clearly shows.

Shaun's downward spiral dates back to the death of his father 3 years ago, Marni says. Since then, Weiss has been arrested for possession of meth and sentenced to 150 days in jail for stealing -- on top of last weekend's trip to the drunk tank.

Shaun found steady work after the 3 'Ducks' movies, but it's been a couple of years since his last acting gig. He would tell friends he was working on different projects, but no one ever saw the finished products.

After finding Shaun sleeping on her porch one night last year, Marni decided it was time to contact his niece. Weiss didn't like that, Marni says, and he began to distance himself from his friends.

Still, Marni wants Shaun to get help and she's started a GoFundMe to pay for his rehab.

Who needs CSI when you have the Internet?

The cops who arrested NASCAR honcho Brian France found 5 oxycodone pills on him during the bust and used the website Drugs.com to identity them ... this according to court docs obtained by TMZ Sports.

The Sag Harbor PD says the pills -- yellow in color, labeled T194 -- came right up on the website ... which touts its "pill identifier" feature on the home page.

Don't worry, the cops also submitted the pills to the lab for confirmation.

There's more ... cops say France's blood alcohol level was .19 -- more than twice the legal limit in New York when he was busted at 7:08 PM on Sunday.

During the arrest, France had slurred speech, glassy eyes and was unsteady on his feet.

France was booked for drunk driving and criminal possession of a controlled substance.

If convicted on both counts, he faces up to a year in jail and loss of driving privileges for a year.

Brian France -- CEO and chairman of NASCAR -- says he will be taking an indefinite leave of absence after his DUI and oxycodone arrest.

TMZ Sports broke the story ... France was busted in the Hamptons on Sunday evening. Cops say he was drunk and illegally in possession of prescription oxycodone pills.

France -- widely considered one of the most powerful people in pro sports -- has issued a statement apologizing.

"I apologize to our fans, our industry and my family for the impact of my actions [Sunday] night. Effective immediately, I will be taking an indefinite leave of absence from my position to focus on my personal affairs."

NASCAR says Brian's uncle, Jim France, has "assumed the role of interim chairman and chief executive officer."

Story developing ...

9:54 AM PT -- NASCAR has issued a statement to TMZ Sports saying ... "We are aware of an incident that occurred last night and are in the process of gathering information."

"We take this as a serious matter and will issue a statement after we have all of the facts.”

Brian France -- the CEO and Chairman of NASCAR -- was arrested for DUI on Sunday evening in The Hamptons and cops say he was also in possession of oxycodone .. TMZ Sports has learned.

The 56-year-old -- one of the most powerful people in professional sports -- was initially stopped in Sag Harbor, NY while driving a 2017 Lexus. Cops say he blew through a stop sign at 7:30 PM.

During the stop, we're told officers suspected France was intoxicated and conducted a field sobriety test ... which France bombed.

We're told France's blood alcohol level was more than TWICE the legal limit. Cops say during the stop, they found oxycodone pills during a search of his person.

France was arrested and hauled to a nearby station where he was booked for DUI and criminal possession of a controlled substance in the 7th degree. France spent the night in jail and was released Monday morning after his arraignment.

And sources tell us ... during the process, France was name-dropping all of the powerful people he knew and even mentioned his relationship with President Donald Trump.

The France family is racing royalty -- Brian's grandfather Bill France Sr. (aka Big Bill) founded NASCAR back in 1948 and ran the organization. Brian's father took over the role from 1972 to 2000.

Brian has been CEO since 2003.

Sag Harbor is one of the most exclusive communities in the Hamptons -- where stars like Billy Joel have homes.

And, as one local puts it, "It's so stupid to drive drunk in the Hamptons. They have police checkpoints everywhere and police are always looking for drunk drivers."

Story developing ...

Demi Lovato is getting treatment at a rehab facility where she will remain for an extended period of time ... TMZ has learned.

Sources close to Lovato tell us she was discharged from Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in L.A. Saturday and took a private plane to the facility, which is outside California.

The rehab center is one of the nation's leading facilities for addiction.

TMZ broke the story ... Lovato's team has a plan set in place to scrub the negative people and "yes men" who contributed to Demi's downhill spiral. We're told they enabled her and fueled her addiction for months before the OD that almost killed her.

Demi addressed the OD for the first time Sunday, saying, "I have always been transparent about my journey with addiction. What I've learned is that this illness is not something that disappears or fades with time. It is something I must continue to overcome and have not done yet."

Demi Lovato's team is hell-bent on getting her back to good health and keeping her there ... which is why they plan to help her weed out all of her bad influences.

Sources close to Demi tell us ... there will be a major focus on separating her from toxic people in her life once she gets out of rehab -- including even a distant relative who is believed to have a negative impact on her.

We're told Demi's camp held a meeting this week to discuss sweeping out anyone who doesn't have her best interests in mind ... and decided any partymongers, drug users, or "yes" friends who allow her to get in harm's way won't be tolerated. BTW, we're told one friend in particular is on the hit list.

Our sources say Demi will also be advised to get a new phone number and only give it out to trusted advisers and friends ... and keep negative people at bay.

We broke the story ... Demi's agreed to go to rehab as soon as she's out of the hospital and already has plans with the live-in facility set up.

Orlando Brown needs Siri, Google, Alexa ... or something to remind him to turn his ass in to Las Vegas cops, since he's already forgotten to get said ass to court.

A clerk with the Las Vegas Justice Court tells TMZ ... Orlando was supposed to appear in court Thursday for his drug possession case, but never showed up, so a judge issued an arrest warrant.

TMZ broke the story ... Orlando was arrested and booked for felony narcotics possession along with misdemeanor charges of drug paraphernalia and resisting arrest.

Seems Orlando hasn't learned his lesson. The last time there was a warrant out for his arrest -- just 4 months ago -- bounty hunters stormed into a Vegas house and dragged him out at gunpoint ... in his underwear.

Demi Lovato has broken her silence on her near-fatal overdose almost two weeks ago, saying she hasn't beaten her addiction ... and wants to focus on sobriety and almost certainly rehab.

The "Sorry Not Sorry" singer posted an open letter on social media Sunday saying ... "I have always been transparent about my journey with addiction. What I've learned is that this illness is not something that disappears or fades with time. It is something I must continue to overcome and have not done yet."

She goes on to thank God for keeping her alive through the ordeal, her fans for their love and support, and the staff at Cedars-Sinai for working diligently to nurse her back to relative health.

She finishes by saying ... "I now need time to heal and focus on my sobriety and road to recovery. The love you have all shown me will never be forgotten and I look forward to the day where I can say I came out on the other side. I will keep fighting."

As we reported, Demi agreed to enter a rehab facility immediately after her release from the hospital. And her message is clear ... she's going to follow through.

Demi Lovato was in such dire condition when she OD'd her assistant thought she was dead, and one of her bodyguards may have saved her life ... TMZ has learned.

Sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ, the bodyguard somehow knew there was an emergency at Demi's home a week ago Tuesday morning, and when he entered the home Demi's assistant was screaming, "She's dead, she's dead!"

We're told the bodyguard rushed to Demi's side and it appeared she was not breathing. Our sources say there was blood on her pillow ... an ominous sign, because it's evidence of hemorrhaging. It appears there was also vomit and her airways may have been clogged.

Our sources say the bodyguard administered some sort of first aid to keep Demi alive before paramedics arrived. Based on what we're told it appears the bodyguard propped Demi up and tried clearing her airway which allowed her to breathe.

As we reported ... when paramedics arrived they administered Narcan, which reverses the effects of an opioid OD.

Our sources say the bodyguard, the assistant and others on Demi's team were aware she had fallen off the wagon months before. As early as Coachella in April, we're told Demi was "way out of it" at French Montana's house party.

Demi Lovato has agreed to go to rehab, and plans have already been made with the facility ... TMZ has learned.

Sources with direct knowledge tell us, Demi's family has squarely raised the issue of rehab with her ... something they delayed for days because of the many complications resulting from the OD. Demi was very sick and her family did not want to upset her with something that might trigger conflict.

We're told she's still at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, but one source says, "She's getting out any day now." Our sources say there will be no transition ... it's right from Cedars to a live-in rehab facility.

We do not know which facility Demi will enter and whether it's in California or another state.

Luann de Lesseps has been released from rehab after less than 3 weeks, and she says it helped her out ... so she's already preparing to get back to work.

Sources close to the situation tell TMZ ... the 'Real Housewives of New York' star reached out to friends Monday to let them know she was out of her Connecticut rehab facility. She told them she's "doing better" and getting ready for her cabaret gig at The Paramount in Long Island Saturday night.

The show will be her first public appearance since her rehab stint.

We broke the story ... those close to Luann said she fell off the wagon at least 2 weeks before she checked into rehab a few weeks back -- for the second time in less than a year.

Demi Lovato is doing a lot better and the plan is for her to get out of the hospital this week, but she's now faced with a decision ... go to rehab, or lose a lot of the people close to her.

Sources with firsthand knowledge tell TMZ, Demi has stabilized from her overdose -- an OD that was so bad she was in danger of dying -- and her team is making plans to send her to rehab. The decision is ultimately Demi's, and we're told the people closest to her, along with some of the people who work for her, are going to draw a line in the sand -- either go to a facility for help, or lose our number.

At least one key person who works for Demi tells TMZ, they will quit if she doesn't check herself in. As the source said, "She could die if she doesn't, and that's not going to be on my watch that we did nothing."