IN BRIEF : 3 of Carl Monroe’s Prescriptions Were Forged, 49er’s Doctor Says

A doctor whose name was on four tranquilizer bottles found in the apartment of former San Francisco 49er Carl Monroe, who died suddenly at age 29, said three of the prescriptions were forged, according to a published report.

San Jose police found two empty bottles of Valium and two empty bottles of diazepam, a generic form of Valium, in Monroe’s apartment Wednesday, the day he died, the San Francisco Chronicle reported today. Police are investigating the prescriptions amid speculation that Monroe may have died of a Valium overdose. But the Santa Clara County medical examiner’s office emphasized that it will be several weeks before results of an autopsy are completed.

A doctor who was treating Monroe for chronic bronchitis said he prescribed Valium once, on April 18, to help Monroe sleep. But the doctor, who asked that his name not be used, denied treating or writing the prescriptions of three other bottles found in the apartment. The doctor, who said he recently noticed some prescription pads missing from his office, said he did not treat three other men whose names were listed on the bottles.