Michael Jackson killed by Demerol shot given by aide, doctor claims

Michael Jackson's personal doctor has claimed he was killed when his aide gave him a shot of the painkiller Demerol.

Dr Conrad Murray is believed to have told police he was asleep when the singer received the fatal dose.

He said he woke to find the 50-year-old dead and desperately tried to revive him.

The cardiologist is reported to have told police that he had already given Jackson the surgical anaesthetic Propofol- also known as Diprivan - on the day he died but that the star had woken when the effects wore off and demanded more pain relief.

An aide then administered the second drug and the combination of the two triggered a massive heart attack.

Jackson is thought to have first taken Demerol to control the pain of burns to his scalp he suffered filming a Pepsi advert.

Propofol - which should only be given in a hospital environment - can be delivered by an intravenous drip to release a steady supply.

There should always be equipment available to monitor the electrical impulses of the patient's heart and the level of oxygen in their blood supply when they take the drug.

An ECG would trigger an alarm if the patient flatlined, while a pulse oximeter would sound if oxygen supplies changed.

Neither device was found by detectives when they searched Jackson's rented Holmby Hills mansion following his death.

Dr Murray's lawyer Ed Chernoff has always maintained that his client denies giving Jacko anything that killed him.