Let the awfulness begin: Jackson's former nanny reveals drug, money problems

Jun 28, 2009, 12:56 GMT

Michael Jackson fans gather under the Eiffel Tower in Paris, France, 28 June 2009. Grace Rwaramba, 42, who worked as a nanny to Jackson`s three children until last December, gave a rare insight into the singer\'s drug and financial problems in an interview published in the Sunday Times in London. EPA/IAN LANGSDON

Los Angeles/London - Michael Jackson's former child minder has spoken of how she regularly had to pump the late singer's stomach to remove the dangerous drug cocktails he took, in an interview published in Britain.

Grace Rwaramba, 42, who worked as a nanny to Jackson`s three children until last December, gave a rare insight into the singer's drug and financial problems in an interview published in the Sunday Times in London.

'I had to pump his stomach many times. He always mixed so much of it,' she said of the various drugs Jackson had taken.

There was one period that it was so bad that I didn't let the children see him ... He always ate too little and mixed too much,' Rwaramba said.

She said that at one point she had turned to Jackson's mother and one of his sisters, asking them to intervene.

In 1993, Jackson's former concert manager Marcel Avram said the 'King of Pop' will frequently used painkillers such as morphine and Demerol. The pop star had to cancel a world tour because of his addiction and underwent treatment in London.

Rwaramba also gave details of Jackson's nomadic lifestyle that took him from country to country, and of his falling under the increasing influence of the extremist Nation of Islam sect.

Rwaramba, an employee in the Jackson household for 17 years, flew out of London to join the Jackson family in Los Angeles on Saturday, the Sunday Times said.

'He didn't want to listen; that was one of the times he let me go,' she said.

Rwaramba was dismissed last December but has since had contact with the children, according to the newspaper.

On one occasion in April, she said, Jackson was so poor she had to buy balloons for his daughters birthday.

Her revelations came as Los Angeles police confirmed they had questioned Jackson`s private doctor, Conrad Murray, who had attended to the pop star in his dying hours Thursday.

Details of the three-hour police interview were not known. Police reportedly told the media in a statement only that the doctor had been cooperative.

Jackson`s relatives have meanwhile been unable to contact Murray to learn about the singer`s final hours, according to US civil rights activist Jesse Jackson. The family was growing increasingly upset as a result, he said.

Late Saturday, a pathologist hired by the family conducted a second autopsy on Jackson's body, the Los Angeles Times reported on its website.

It remained clear Sunday whether tickets sold for Jackson planned series of 50 'This is it' concerts in London that were due to kick off on July 13 would be refunded.

With millions of concert tickets, VIP tickets and reservations for special tours already sold, concert organizers AEG Live now face a liability of around 300 million pounds (610 million dollars). The company had invested some 20 million pounds in preparations.

Randy Phillips, the head of the US entertainment company said AEG Live would provide details of reimbursement on Monday. 'Fans are advised to hold on to their ticket vouchers/proof of purchase.'