Liam Payne Death Probe Twist: Singer's Pal Wrongly Fingered as Suspect Denies 'Abandoning' Tragic Star Before Balcony Plunge
Liam Payne's close pal denies he 'abandoned' tragic singer.
Nov. 8 2024, Published 8:17 a.m. ET
Liam Payne's close friend has denied "abandoning" the tragic star before his death plunge – after being wrongly identified as a suspect in the drug-fueled tragedy.
RadarOnline.com can reveal Rogelio 'Roger' Nores was believed to be one of the three suspects charged with abandonment of a person followed by death and supply and facilitation of narcotics.
Payne fell to his death from a third floor balcony aged 31.
But Nores has denied he deserted Payne, who fell to his death from a third floor hotel balcony last month after a drug-fuelled bender.
Nores told The Sun: "I went to his hotel three times that day and left 40 minutes before this happened.
"I could have never imagined something like this would happen."
Two hotel workers are also among the three individuals now being formally investigated by authorities.
Payne was on a dug-fuelled bender when he died.
Nores added: "I never abandoned Liam, I went to his hotel three times that day and left 40 minutes before this happened.
"There were over 15 people at the hotel lobby chatting and joking with him when I left.
"I could have never imagined something like this would happen. I've given my statement to the prosecutor on October 17th as a witness.
"I haven't spoken to any police officer or prosecutor ever since.
Rogelio 'Roger' Nores says he misses Payne 'every day'.
"I wasn't Liam’s manager he was just my very dear friend and please refer to the email I sent to Liam and his team on August 23rd.
"I’m really heart broken with this tragedy, and I’ve missing my friend every day."
The One Direction star died, aged just 31, after falling from a balcony at the CasaSur Palmero Hotel in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on October 16.
Fans left tributes to singer at London's Hyde Park.
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A statement from Argentina's public prosecutor said: "Liam Payne was not fully conscious or was experiencing a state of noticeable decrease or loss of consciousness at the time of the fall."
It added one of the accused "accompanied the artist on a daily basis" during his stay in Argentina.
A hotel employee is also accused of supplying Payne with cocaine twice while he stayed at the hotel, prosecutors added.
Payne's girlfriend Kate Cassidy is expected to attend his funeral.
A third person is accused of supplying drugs to the singer twice during his stay on October 14, the statement said.
Prosecutor Andres Esteban Madrea confirmed they are both charged with two acts each of supplying narcotics.
The prosecutor's office said it had heard several dozen testimonies and analysed more than 800 hours of CCTV footage from security cameras.
They said they carried out a "forensic extraction" of Liam's phone, sifting through his call logs, messages and social media accounts.
The star's One Direction bandmates are also expected to attend.
Nine raids have also been carried out on properties in Buenos Aires.
A post-mortem concluded Liam's death was caused by "multiple trauma" and "internal and external haemorrhage" after the fall.
Prosecutors said there was nothing to indicate any third party was involved in the death.
They also ruled out "self-harm", according to a forensic psychiatric report.
The singer's body returned to the UK on Thursday at London’s Heathrow airport, accompanied by Payne's father Geoff.
His funeral is set to take place in the next ten days and his One Direction band-mates Harry Styles, Louis Tomlinson, Zayn Malik and Niall Horan are expected to attend, as well as his girlfriend Kate Cassidy.
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