Michael Jackson 'Never Forgave' Sister La Toya for Publicly Branding Him a Pedophile in 1993 Child Sex Abuse Scandal, King of Pop's Bodyguard Reveals
Michael Jackson is said to have never forgiven sister La Toya for publicly shaming him during his sexual abuse alleations.
June 5 2026, Published 4:30 p.m. ET
Michael Jackson "never forgave" his older sister LaToya Jackson for turning on him decades ago, at the height of his child s-x abuse scandal, RadarOnline.com can report.
The King of Pop's former bodyguard revealed the siblings' relationship was never the same, even if the hitmaker put on a happy face in public.
La Toya Jackson's Betrayal was 'Harsh'
La Toya Jackson held a press conference to announce she believed her brother was guilty.
As her brother faced growing accusations of abuse, La Toya famously and shockingly told reporters in 1993 that she believed the allegations were true.
The now 70-year-old singer said during a press conference that she said she had seen checks made out to different boys' families and that Jackson's abuse as a child had turned him into an abuser.
Years later, La Toya retracted the statements, claiming she was forced to make them by her then-husband and manager, Jack Gordon. But the damage was done.
"I will never forgive her for what she did back in the 90s. And I don't think Michael ever forgave her either," the Thriller hitmaker's longtime personal bodyguard, Matt Fiddes, confessed on The Art of Dialogue podcast. "I don't think you can."
Fiddes blasted, "That was quite harsh to go on national TV to accuse your brother that you believe he is a child molester."
Michael's confidant said anytime the two appeared together and looked to be happy was just show business:
"He just did that maybe to please his mom, and his father just to get on with life. You know, family fallout," Fiddes claimed.
The Allegations Led to a Lack of Sleep for Michael Jackson
Matt Fiddes said Michael Jackson never recovered from her betrayal.
Fiddes said the stress and aftermath of the abuse allegations, coupled with his estrangement from La Toya, were key contributors to Michael's sleep issues.
The bodyguard said it often fell on him to find the singer some drowsiness-inducing cough syrup. But the loyal protector said he was shocked at the amount of liquid his boss would ingest.
"I get to his hotel room, and it horrified me cuz he downed them," Fiddes recalled, clarifying Michael would routinely go through two full bottles a night. "He like, downed them. Boom, boom, boom, boom, boom. And then he got another one. Downed it."
Michael Jackson turned to massive amounts of cough syrup to help him sleep.
Fiddes said the amount of liquid Michael drank far exceeded the "daily recommended dose."
"I was like, 'Whoa, I think you should just take two, five (milliliter) teaspoons of that, Mike," Fiddes continued, adding, "He said, 'No, I have to have it. I won't sleep. I got this important meeting in the morning. I got people flying in.'
"And it didn't work. He drank two bottles of it. And he was still wide awake two hours later. He stayed up all night."
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Michael Jackson Overdosed Years Before His Death
Paris Jackson alerted the singer's bodyguards that her father, Michael, was not responsive after an overdose.
Fiddes revealed that Michael's addiction to sleep aids nearly had a fatal effect years before his overdose death on June 25, 2009.
"Michael nearly died on us in 2003," Fiddes recalled. "A doctor administered this medication to Michael, and Michael was barely breathing."
The bodyguard said he may have been too late to save him, had daughter Paris Jackson not intervened.
"Paris, his daughter, brought it to our attention," Fiddes added, explaining the iconic singer's crew covered up the episode. "And they ran to revive him, but he didn't want paramedics to come because it'd be worldwide news."
