Robert Downey Jr.’s son charged with felony cocaine possession

Indio Falconer Downey, the son of actor Robert Downey Jr., has been charged with felony cocaine possession after being arrested in West Hollywood during a traffic stop.

He also was charged with misdemeanor possession of a smoking device in connection with the June arrest, said Ricardo Santiago, a district attorney’s spokesman. He is due in court later this month for arraignment.

Sheriff’s deputies arrested Indio Downey in West Hollywood after he was seen in the passenger seat of a vehicle “apparently using” a pipe to smoke cocaine, according to sheriff’s deputies.

The driver of the car and another passenger were released, but the 20-year-old son of the “Iron Man” actor and his first wife, Deborah Falconer, was held on suspicion of possessing a controlled substance and drug paraphernalia. He remains free on $10,250 bail.

After the arrest, Indio Downey entered a treatment program, and his father praised the deputies’ action.

“We’re grateful to the Sheriff’s Department for their intervention, and believe Indio can be another recovery success story instead of a cautionary tale,” said Robert Downey Jr., whose own struggle with substance abuse is well-known.

“Unfortunately there’s a genetic component to addiction and Indio has likely inherited it,” his statement continued. “Also, there is a lot of family support and understanding, and we’re all determined to rally behind him and help him become the man he’s capable of being.”

Indio Downey sings and plays guitar in the L.A. band the Seems.

Robert Downey Jr., a two-time Oscar nominee who ranks among Hollywood’s highest-paid actors, has a lengthy drug history. His life spiraled out of control in 1990s, leading him to spend time in L.A. County Jail and eventually the California state prison system.

Downey and Falconer split in 2001, and their divorce was finalized in 2004. He remarried and turned around his career, becoming one of Hollywood’s most bankable stars with a string of movies grossing billions of dollars worldwide.

Follow Southern California crime @lacrimes.