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How did Prince die? Autopsy seeks answers

The 57-year-old musician, whose full name was Prince Rogers Nelson, has one sister, Tyka Nelson, who reportedly greeted Prince fans outside of his Paisley Park recording studio in Chanhassen, Minnesota, on Thursday, following his death.

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She said “relevant information” related to Prince’s medical and family history would be sought. He was pronounced dead at 10:07 a.m., less than 30 minutes after sheriff’s deputies responded to a medical call at the scene.

Police released the transcript of the 911 call that alerted them to the situation, and earlier today, the Midwest Medical Examiner announced that the finished their autopsy of Prince’s body. Thursday morning, staff members were unable to contact the singer, and went to Paisley Park to check on him. The results of a full toxicology scan could take weeks to come back, which means no results will be published until such time. The body will be released to the family later Friday. Anything which could be relevant to the investigation will be taken into consideration.

During a press conference in Minnesota Friday afternoon, Sheriff Jim Olson said that he would respect Prince’s privacy in death, but did reveal a few new details.

“It was a complete exam and meticulous exam”, said Martha Weaver, Carver County Medical Examiner.

Olson said they will be talking to people close to Prince and gathering medical records, as part of the investigation. Olson said in a press release first-responders performed CPR, but Prince could not be revived. Olson also stated that “this was an unwitnessed death”. And there will be none until the autopsy is completed and the toxicology results are returned. At that point, Prince’s body was found unresponsive in an elevator by authorities.

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TMZ reports that Prince overdosed on the powerful painkiller Percocet days before his death, requiring a “save shot” at the airport in Moline, Illinois where his plane made an emergency.

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