Prince — The Truth Behind His Drug Overdose

Authorities have confirmed that legendary rocker Prince died of a drug overdose — as originally reported by The National ENQUIRER in a bombshell world exclusive! The 57-year-old singer was found dead April 21 at his Paisley Park complex in Minnesota. The official autopsy reported that Prince overdosed on opiods, which include popular drugs like morphine, Oxycontin, and methadone!

“Prince was addicted to pain meds for years," an insider told The ENQUIRER shortly after the star's death. "He overdosed on Percocet on the morning of April 15 while flying back to Minnesota from a show in Atlanta. The plane had to make an emergency stop in Moline, Ill. — and medics had to give Prince a special drug that stops overdoses. Now the question is, did he get those pills legally — and where are they?"

The ENQUIRER revealed more inside details of the “Purple Rain” sensation’s heartbreaking end — and reported that police reviewed video footage that captured Prince's demise in an elevator! “These videos prove Prince wasn’t murdered, as some have suggested,” the source said. “They show he was alone, and committed suicide by overdose. The truth is he knew he had only months to live. He didn’t want to die a slow, lingering death. He cleared the property at Paisley Park, then ate a bottle of pills the night before he was found collapsed and dead in the elevator. The tapes show all of this.”

The 5'2" star overdosed on prescription pain pills because he was facing a sad and painful death from AIDS, said a highly-placed source. After obtaining a warrant, police searched Prince’s massive home and studio. They seized the tapes and “accompanying documents,” according to the law enforcement source. “But hundreds of pills said to be at Paisley Park disappeared before lawmen arrived,” the insider said. “Police suspect a cover-up.”

The autopsy results also mean that the investigation could lead to criminal charges for the pushers who provided the fatal cocktail. The Carver County Attorney’s Office is keeping all evidence locked down “until the commencement of criminal proceedings or the passing of 180 days,” court documents obtained by The ENQUIRER revealed. Authorities said the release of details of their search could “compromise this law enforcement investigation” because key evidence could be hidden or destroyed.

As The ENQUIRER reported, Prince had been diagnosed with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, in the 1990s. The Jehovah’s Witness chose not to fight the deadly disease with medications due to his faith, believing “God will save me!” Six months ago, he was told by doctors he had full-blown AIDS and had just six months to live, sources said. “He couldn’t take the pain the disease was causing him in its last stages,” an insider told The ENQUIRER. “And he didn’t want to just slowly waste away!"

Normally strangely reclusive, the musician had made himself very visible over the weekend following the emergency medical stop in Moline. Prince went shopping for records, hosted a dance party at Paisley Park, and attended a show at a Minneapolis jazz club on April 19. The last time anyone saw him alive was at about 8 p.m. on April 20. Sources insisted he was alone at Paisley Park when he died. “The videotapes, in conjunction with the autopsy, will answer almost every question investigators are asking,” the informant said.

"Prince said just a few nights before he died that fans should wait a few days before wasting any prayers on him," added the source. "In retrospect, an obvious tip-off that he knew he was going to die.” A source added that cops are investigating more than who supplied the pills that went missing before they were called to Prince’s Chanhassen, Minn., studios. Police are also probing a possible attempted cover-up of the cause of his death.

Prince's body was discovered by staff members who called to check on him. When the notorious rock star didn’t answer his phone, they rushed to his estate and called 911 upon finding his body. Carver County sheriff’s deputies and medical personnel found Prince on the floor of the elevator and attempted to perform CPR. He could not be revived, and was pronounced dead at 10:07 a.m.

His corpse was later transported to the Midwest Medical Examiner’s Office in Ramsey, Minn. On April 22, that office conducted an autopsy — with Prince's body released to his family that same afternoon. The rocker's remains were cremated almost immediately, with sources claiming it was a move to cover up his ongoing battle with AIDS. Now his family is fighting over the dead rocker's fortune, and Prince’s drug dealers are being targeted by law enforcement!