Fans continue to mourn the loss of music legend Prince as state and federal officials piece together his final days.
Developments are emerging along two tracks: the cause of his death and what to do with his vast estate. Here's the latest:
The U.S. Attorney's Office and the Drug Enforcement Agency announced Wednesday they're joining forces with local investigators led by the Carver County Sheriff's Office.
They will provide "federal resources and expertise about prescription drug diversion," according to a statement issued by federal prosecutors in Minneapolis.
According to a law enforcement source, investigatorsfound prescription opioid medication on Prince and in his Minnesota home after his death.
So far, investigators haven't found valid prescriptions for the painkillers, law enforcement sources told CNN last week and again Thursday.
Federal investigators will try to determine if people in Prince's inner circle may have helped obtain drugs for him, law enforcement officials familiar with the investigation told CNN.
The DEA has an entire branch devoted to prescription drug abuse, which can involve complicit doctors or pharmacists, patients obtaining multiple prescriptions from a variety of physicians or the purchase of illegally obtained prescription drugs from illicit sources.
Officials have yet to publicly comment on what killed Prince. Results of an April 22 autopsy are still pending.
His issues with addiction
Also Wednesday, we learned that Prince's team sought help from Dr. Howard Kornfeld, an eminent opioid addiction specialist, the day before the entertainer died. Kornfield sent his son, Andrew, to Minnesota, to prep the singer for a possible trip to California for treatment.
By the time he arrived at the singer's Paisley Park complex on the morning of April 21, it was too late. Andrew Kornfeld ended up calling 911 to report Prince had been found unresponsive.
Since then, a former attorney for two of Prince's dead siblings has come forward with more troubling information. Lawyer Michael B. Padden said the siblings revealed Prince had an addiction to Percocet decades before his sudden death in April.
Duane Nelson, who died in 2013, was adamant that Prince was in no way just a recreational user, Padden said. The singer started using the drug to help him deal with the rigors of performing, Nelson said. Another half-sibling, Lorna Nelson, confirmed Prince's drug use but was not involved in getting drugs for him, Padden said. She died in 2006.
See more at: http://edition.cnn.com/
No comments:
Post a Comment