Prince 'signed up to rehab to battle pain killer addiction' in days before his death

PRINCE had reportedly planned on going to rehab for his painkiller addiction before his death last month.

Investigators are looking into a suspected drug overdose as the cause of death.

The Little Red Corvette singer was found dead in an elevator at his Paisley Park mansion in Minnesota on April 21.

Prince was found dead at his home on April 21 Getty Images

The previous night he had been seen looking frail at a local Walgreen's pharmacy.

Now reports in the US suggest the singer had signed up to a treatment programme to battle his addiction to the powerful painkiller Percocet.

According to Minneapolis station KSTP 5 Eyewitness News, Prince attended a rehab centre to try and decrease his dependence on the prescription meds.

The 57-year-old star had reportedly needed a double hip transplant for 10 years before his death but refused to undergo the surgery because of his beliefs.

The musical icon was a member of the Jehovah's Witnesses who do not believe in blood transfusions.
It's believed Prince was prescribed the meds to help with his severe hip pain.

Prince: Death investigation focuses on painkillers

Sources told the station that this doesn't mean the musical icon was "addicted to controlled substances".

They reported that many people seek out-patient treatment to ensure they do not become addicted to the powerful medication.

The news comes as TMZ have reported that Prince visited Walgreens at least four times in the week leading up to his death.

The trustee of his estate are drilling into his vault to find unreleased recordings Getty Images

Family members told the website that the singer may have chosen a pharmacy six miles away from his home in order to hide his prescription paper trail.

They revealed he could have been using a number of different names to receive prescriptions from multiple doctors.

Prince's personal chef Ray Roberts also told Citypages.com that the singer had been acting differently on the night of his death.

He said: "He didn't seem like his normal self that night. He'd been like that for months."

Prince's chef said he hadn't been himself for months Getty

Ray and his wife Juell had cooked for the superstar for three years.

He revealed the last meal he made for the singer was roasted red pepper bisque and kale salad.

He said: "The last few months he had the flu or a cold, always. There was always something going on.

"He was off his game and needed to rest. I had to be careful about what I was serving him."

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Half his fortune will go to the government in taxes Reuters

Meanwhile, 5 Eyewitness News has also discovered that Bremer Bank, who have been appointed as trustee of Prince's estate, have hired a company to drill through Prince's personal vault at his Paisley Park mansion.

Sources told the network that the bank had to move quickly as they are "responsible for safeguarding and handling all of Prince's assets."

It's believed the vault, which only Prince had the combination to, holds dozens of his unreleased recordings.

The results of Prince's autopsy are expected this week and the search warrant and its inventory list are set to be made public on Friday unless a judge orders it to be sealed.

His wealth is estimated to be between £200million and £340million ($300million and $500million) but because Prince wasn't married approximately half of his fortune will go to the US government in inheritance tax.

The rest will be divided between his six surviving siblings, Tyka Nelson, John Nelson, Omar Baker, Alfred Jackson, Sharon Nelson and Norrine Nelson and potentially his late half-brother's grand-niece.