Deputies think Jackson safe with Ariz. family

LOS ANGELES — Authorities said Sunday they believe Katherine Jackson, the mother of Michael Jackson and the guardian of his three minor children, is safe in Arizona with family members after she was reported missing.

The disclosure came after another concerned family member officially reported her missing Saturday night amid a dispute over the estate of her superstar son.

A person familiar with Katherine Jackson’s whereabouts said she is with her daughter Rebbie in Arizona and following a doctor’s orders to rest. The person was not authorized to speak publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.

The 82-year-old Jackson family matriarch’s whereabouts caused concern for some family members in recent days, and her granddaughter Paris Jackson issued a frantic plea on Twitter early Sunday.

“I haven’t spoken with her in a week I want her home now,” she posted from her Twitter account. She also tweeted a number for people to contact in case they saw her grandmother.

The family drama unfolded days after it was revealed that some of Katherine Jackson’s children had written a letter to the executors of Michael Jackson’s estate, alleging his will, which left his fortune to his children, his mother and charity, was a fake.

The estate has denied the accusations.