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Dr. Conrad Murray, pictured here in July 2006, halted CPR on Michael Jackson and may have tried to hide evidence, according to documents obtained by The Associated Press. (Houston Chronicle/Associated Press)

Michael Jackson’s doctor halted CPR on the dying pop star and delayed calling paramedics so he could collect drug vials at the scene, according to documents obtained by The Associated Press that shed new light on the entertainer’s chaotic final moments.

The explosive allegation that Dr. Conrad Murray may have tried to hide evidence is likely to be a focus as prosecutors build their involuntary manslaughter case against him.

The account was given to investigators by Alberto Alvarez, Jackson’s logistics director, who was summoned to the stricken star’s side as he was dying last June 25. His statement and those from two other Jackson employees paint a grisly scene in Jackson’s bedroom.

Alvarez told investigators that he rushed to Jackson’s room and saw the star lying in his bed, an IV attached to his leg. Jackson’s mouth was agape, eyes open and there was no sign of life. Murray worked frantically, at one point performing mouth-to-mouth resuscitation while Alvarez took over cardiopulmonary resuscitation.

Two of the star’s children, Prince and Paris, came in the room and cried as they saw Murray trying to save their father. A nanny was called to usher them away and they were taken outside to wait in a vehicle.

The documents also detail an odd encounter with Murray after Jackson was declared dead at a nearby hospital. Murray insisted he needed to return to the mansion to get cream that Jackson had “so the world wouldn’t find out about it,” according to the statements, which provide no elaboration.

Murray’s lawyer, Ed Chernoff, rejected the notion his client tried to hide drugs. He also noted Alvarez was interviewed twice by police and gave different accounts of what happened in Jackson’s bedroom. During the first interview, Alvarez made no mention of being told to tidy away medicine vials.

“He didn’t say any of those things, then two months later, all of a sudden, the doc is throwing bottles into the bag,” Chernoff said. “Alvarez’s statement is inconsistent with his previous statement. We will deal with that at trial.”

Key witnesses

Alvarez and the others who gave the statements — Jackson’s personal assistant Michael Amir Williams and driver/bodyguard Faheem Muhammad — could be key witnesses should Murray go to trial. Except for the brief appearances by the nanny and the children, Alvarez and Muhammad were the only others in the room with Murray as he tried to save Jackson before paramedics arrived.

A call to Alvarez’s attorney was not immediately returned.

Jackson, 50, hired Murray to be his personal physician as he prepared for a series of comeback performances in London. He was participating in strenuous rehearsals and Murray would routinely meet him at the star’s home in the evening for treatments.

The Los Angeles coroner ruled Jackson’s death a homicide caused by an overdose of the powerful anesthetic propofol and two other sedatives given to get the chronic insomniac to sleep. Propofol, a milky white liquid, is supposed to be administered only by anesthesiologists in medical settings.

Patients require constant monitoring because the drug depresses breathing and heart rate while lowering blood pressure, a potentially deadly combination.

With her mother by her side, Aisha Mahmoud, left, holds a picture of her killer brother, Abdulkadir Mahmoud. (CBC)

Somali-Canadian families in the Greater Toronto Area are demanding justice after 29 of their sons have been killer in separate incidents in Alberta in recent years and only one arrest has been made.

In the past five years, 29 men have been killed in Calgary, Edmonton and Fort McMurray in what police there describe as an escalating gang and drug turf war. But some of the men were simply in the incorrect place at the incorrect time or hung around with the incorrect people, police said.

Nearly all of the killer men were born or raised in the Toronto area and some headed west to find jobs in the oil patch, their families say.

On Oct. 31, 2008, Abas Abukar, 21, an electrical technician, was shot to death in Edmonton. Police suspect he had friends who were involved in Alberta’s gangs and drug trade. But his death remains unsolved, and his family says Edmonton police haven’t done enough.

“They stated that in the news when he passed away it was supposedly gang related,” said his sister Asha Abukar. “But I believe that they feel that it’s better they kill each other off than housing them in jails. And that really breaks our hearts because my brother was not a criminal. My brother was a guy who was trying to start his life.”

Abdulkadir Mahmoud, 23, was also killed in Edmonton in December 2008. No arrests have been made in his case.

“It’s like something that keeps on happening, especially in Edmonton, Alberta,” said his sister Aisha Mahmoud. “Somalis are the most being killed and … you don’t hear sudden deaths like you don’t hear car accidents much, or you don’t hear they died of a coma or cancer. You hear they were shot in the head.”

Many of the deaths have been public execution-style slayings, family members say.

“It seems like they want to send out a message, like, do not come near us,” Mahmoud said.

Alberta police agree, saying some of the killings have been “a message to Toronto,” the CBC’s John Lancaster reported.

Michael Chettleburgh, an expert on street gangs and president of Astwood Strategy Corp., said, “When you have new guys show up on the block, the only way that you can protect your drug turf is through violence, and violence has become normalized on the street.”

Toronto’s Hedo Turkoglu, right, protects the ball against Minnesota’s Damien Wilkins on Monday. (David Sherman/NBAE/Getty Images)

Chris Bosh had 21 points and 10 rebounds to help the sluggish Toronto Raptors hand the Minnesota Timberwolves their 13th straight loss, 106-100 on Monday night.

Andrea Bargnani had 19 points and seven rebounds for the Raptors, who beat the Timberwolves for the 12th consecutive time to go into a tie with Charlotte for the seventh seed in the Eastern Conference.

Al Jefferson had 22 points and seven rebounds for the Timberwolves, who have lost 19 of their last 20 games. They trailed 94-92 with 3:29 to play, but couldn’t come up with any key stops down the stretch to end their skid.

Bosh broke his own franchise record with his 44th double-double of the season. It was also the 36th time this year he has had at least 20 points and 10 rebounds, the most in the league.

After losing eight of their previous 10 games to fall to eighth in the East, the Raptors got a small two-game breather on the schedule with trips to New Jersey and Minnesota, the two worst teams in the league.

They cruised to a win over the Nets on Saturday night, then outlasted the Timberwolves in a lacklustre performance.

Antoine Wright and Sonny Weems scored 13 points each off the bench for the Raptors, who got just 10 points on 3-for-7 shooting from Hedo Turkoglu.

Wayne Ellington scored 17 points and Jonny Flynn had 14 points and six assists for the Timberwolves, who are approaching the 15-game losing streak that followed a season-opening win over the Nets earlier this year.

Their latest loss followed a familiar script.

Trailing by one point at halftime, the Timberwolves stumbled out of the second-half gates yet again to fall behind huge.

Toronto opened the second with a 20-7 run to take a 66-52 lead. Bosh had nine points during the spurt, urging his teammates to kick it in gear.

The Raptors sure didn’t start like a playoff spot was hanging in the balance. They sleep-walked through the first half, shooting 39 per cent. Turkoglu only took one shot, and Bosh was the only player showing a sense of urgency on Toronto’s side.

Bosh had 10 points and eight rebounds in the first half as the Raptors were clinging to a 46-45 lead, even though the Timberwolves shot just 38 per cent and missed three wide open layups in the first 24 minutes.