Fans remember Jackson 5 years on

Michael Jackson may well be dead and buried, but his legions of fans have not forgotten him as they paid tribute to his memory on the fifth anniversary of his death.

Many fans dressed up as their icon as they descended on the Forest Lawn cemetery in Los Angeles yesterday, June 25.

The King of Pop, who died in 2009, was visited by loyal fans from across the world; many dressed as their idol, while others carried banners proclaiming their ongoing adoration, or gave their impression of some of his iconic hits.

Flowers were laid on his star on Hollywood Boulevard as well as the mausoleum where he is interred in Glendale.

‘We love you Michael,’ read a banner on a giant red heart. Five years without you – we love you more,’ while others said simply: ‘We miss you’ or ‘Thank you for continuously giving us reason to smile.’

Conrad Murray, voiced his sadness but insisted he was not to blame. Murray was convicted of involuntary manslaughter after the death of Jackson.

“I am very remorseful that Michael has passed,” he said. “Michael was a friend. I felt like a father figure to Michael.” He explained that he treated Michael not as a paid doctor but out of ‘love’.

Michael Jackson died on June 25, 2009 as a result of an overdose of the clinical anaesthetic propofol, given to him by Murray to treat insomnia as the singer prepared for his ‘This is It’ shows in London.

Murray was convicted of involuntary manslaughter in 2011 and was jailed for four years. He was released after serving two years. 

Jackson had been planning a Worldwide comeback tour in an effort to avoid bankruptcy, after he was acquitted of child molestation charges that ruined his career.