Was Jacko in the box?
The King of Pop’s family kept silent as questions swirled yesterday about exactly where Michael Jackson’s gold-plated casket ended up after Tuesday’s public memorial in Los Angeles.
Some have speculated his body was never in the coffin, and people close to the family say, without elaborating, that the pop idol has already been buried.
Before the memorial, Jackson’s body had been at Forest Lawn Cemetery, where the family held a private service. By law, the coffin should have returned there after the public memorial at Staples Center.
The family may be waiting to get Jackson’s brain back, since at least a portion of it was removed for toxicology tests.
The Jackson family seems divided over whether the body should go to Neverland, which would surely turn the ranch into a West-coast Graceland.
Billionaire Thomas Barrack, who owns the ranch in a joint venture with Jackson, has been open to the idea of a burial there. But the family would need approvals from local and state agencies.
Meanwhile, workers began to take down the fan memorial at the Jackson home in Encino, the first step in reopening a local roadway closed after his June 25 death.
Also, officials said LA spent $1.4 million on Jacko’s memorial. Fans donated $17,000 to help defray the cost for the cash-strapped city, but a Web site used for the drive has repeatedly crashed.