Heath Ledger's family has left the United States for the return trip to bury the Australian actor in his home town of Perth.
Ledger's father Kim, mother Sally Ledger Bell and sister Kate were among a group of about 15 family members who flew out of Los Angeles on Monday night amid tight security provided by the Australian Consulate, News Limited said.
It was not clear whether the family was accompanying Ledger's body.
Police and private security staff jostled with a small group of waiting media and an Australian consular representative oversaw the delivery and check-in of the group's luggage, two hours before the family arrived at LAX airport.
A photographer was pushed against the wall by a private minder as the exhausted and sombre family were ushered through a security checkpoint before boarding a Melbourne-bound flight.
His family are likely to hold a private funeral for the Perth-raised star, who was found dead in his rented Manhattan apartment on January 22.
Ledger's former exclusive boys' school says it respects his family's decision to have a private funeral instead of a service in the chapel of Guildford Grammar School.
It is believed the family will bury him in the family plot, near his grandparents, at Perth's Karrakatta cemetery.
A post-mortem examination conducted the day after Ledger's death has failed to determine the cause of death, but speculation soon turned to drug abuse.
Six different anti-anxiety and sleeping prescription drugs were found in the SoHo apartment, but police said there were no illegal drugs.
A toxicology report is expected to be released this week.
