A 16-year-old girl whose nude body was found in Riverview Park by joggers in October died of an accidental drug overdose, the Allegheny County medical examiner's office reported.

The teenager, Teaira Whitehead, died of the toxicity of heroin combined with two medications generally used to combat colds/allergies and coughs, toxicology tests revealed.

Joggers found Teaira's body at the bottom of a hill on a trail below Riverview Avenue in Perry North on the afternoon of Oct. 6.

An autopsy was performed but the cause and manner of death could not be determined until toxicology and other laboratory tests were performed.

In the days following the discovery, county District Attorney Stephen A. Zappala Jr. said someone poured bleach on the body of the teenager. Suspects sometimes use bleach to try to destroy DNA evidence, but they are not always successful, he said.

Teaira, of Homewood, was "known to law enforcement" he said at the time, noting she associated with known heroin dealers. He said he would not describe her as a dealer but said she was a known heroin user.

Teaira, also known as “TT,” attended Pittsburgh Westinghouse 6-12 in 2011 but had not been enrolled in the district since then. Police said she last contacted her family the evening before her body was found.

Pittsburgh police Major Crimes Commander RaShall Brackney said later today that detectives would continue to investigate the death.

"The focus of the investigation will be to determine if her death was the result of a drug delivery under the Pennsylvania Crimes Code, a felony in the [first] degree," she said.

She noted that Pennsylvania allows people to be charged with death by drug delivery if they sold or gave drugs to someone who died "as a result of using the substance."

Michael A. Fuoco: mfuoco@post-gazette.com.

First Published: January 27, 2015, 1:49 p.m.