As the manslaughter trial of Dr. Conrad Murray pushes on, more and more shocking revelations about Michael Jackson’s life and death are popping up in witness testimonies. In recent testimony, one the King of Pop’s former bodyguards, Matt Fiddes, claims that, while preparing for his “This Is It” tour, Jackson became so intensely fearful that he would be assassinated while performing on stage that he considered wearing a bullet-proof vest.
In an interview with Britain’s The People, Fiddes told the publication that Jackson was under such pressure that he drunk whiskey to “calm his nerves” before announcing his concert series at London’s O2 arena in March, 2009.
“Michael had got it into his head that someone would shoot him so he drank the whisky, virtually a half-bottle, to steady himself. He was certain he was going to get shot because of all the bad press from his past,” said Fiddes “It was his first public appearance for ages and he believed he was going to get murdered. … It was a mad panic. We were all trying to get him to sober up.”
Fiddes further explained that he last saw Jackson alive on the following day at the Lanesborough Hotel, where Jackson explained to him the depth of his paranoia.
“’I fear I’m not going to make these concerts, or may get assassinated onstage. Please could you make sure my children are OK,’” said Jackson to Fiddes. “He was a mess. He told me that during his four-month trial before being cleared of child molestation in 2005 he had to wear a bullet-proof vest every day. Michael said he would have to wear one through the concerts and wasn’t sure how he’d get through them because of his worries.”
Fiddes says that he last talked to Jackson on the phone, three days before his death on June 25, 2009, three weeks before the tour was set to begin.
“Michael was incoherent, almost erratic. I asked him how could he do 50 concerts given the state that he was in. He admitted he was not eating or sleeping properly,” said Fiddes. “I said, ‘How do you think you are going to get through this?’ and he replied almost meekly, ‘I have to do it, Matt.’ Perhaps most sadly of all he told me he was doing the concerts for his children Prince, Paris and Blanket because it was the last time that they would see him perform live. He sounded lost, almost as if he somehow knew the end was coming.”
According to the martial arts expert, he’s ready to bring an end to the Murray trial and let his dear friend rest in peace.
“First and foremost to me Michael was a friend, not a global superstar. I’m grateful he let me be a part of his life,” said Fiddes. “Now I just want the Conrad Murray trial to be over so we remember him for the musical genius he was.” –nicholas robinson
