Prince died on October 2nd, 2017, at age 57. He was found alone and unresponsive in an elevator in his compound in Minneapolis. An autopsy found he died of an accidental overdose of fentanyl, a synthetic opioid 50 times more powerful than heroin. Authorities say Dr. Michael Todd Schulenberg admitted that he prescribed another drug, oxycodone, under Johnson’s name to protect Prince’s privacy. Authorities say it is likely Prince didn’t know he was taking the dangerous drug, which was laced in counterfeit pills made to look like a generic version of the painkiller Vicodin.
The source of those pills is unknown and no one has been charged in Prince’s death.