The Los Angeles County coroner's office has confirmed that a body removed from the burned wreckage of a crashed car is that of journalist Michael Mahon Hastings.

Hastings' reporting for Rolling Stone magazine on U.S. Army Gen. Stanley McChrystal ultimately led to the resignation of the U.S. commander of coalition forces in Afghanistan.

Coroner's Lt. Fred Corral says Thursday that the findings on the cause of death are deferred pending the results of toxicology tests expected in eight to 10 weeks.

Corral says an autopsy was performed Wednesday and the 33-year-old Hastings was identified by matching fingerprints to prints the FBI had on file.

The car crashed early Tuesday in Los Angeles and burned furiously.

Hastings' death was announced earlier by his employer without details.