Waiter charged with supplying drugs to Liam Payne arrested - local media
4 January 2025, 06:57 | Updated: 4 January 2025, 07:38
A waiter accused of supplying drugs to Liam Payne prior to his death has been arrested, according to Argentinian media.
Braian Paiz, 24, was one of five people charged over the pop star's death on Monday, and was ordered to appear in court.
The 31-year-old pop star died after he fell from a third-floor balcony at the Casa Sur Hotel in Buenos Aires on 16 October last year.
Paiz and a hotel employee, Ezequiel Pereyra, were charged with supplying drugs on two occasions - an offence which carries a sentence of up to 15 years, the Argentinian Public Prosecutor's Office said on Monday.
Various Argentinian media outlets have reported Paiz was arrested at his home in Ingeniero Budge on Friday.
Reports also claim police raided the home of Pereyra, 21, but did not find him there.
Roger Nores, described as a "representative" of Payne, hotel manager Gilda Martin and receptionist Esteban Grassi have been charged with negligent homicide - a similar offence to manslaughter in UK law which carries a sentence of one to five years.
A statement from the judge and public prosecutor which detailed the final moments before Payne's death said he had been "demanding" drugs and alcohol during his stay at the hotel.
On 16 October, Payne was in the hotel lobby and "unable to stand" due to the "consumption of various substances", the court document said.
The receptionist and two others "dragged" the singer to his room, and the manager allowed this to happen "at least by omission", it added.
Given Payne's "altered" consciousness and the access to a balcony from the room, the "proper thing to do was to leave him in a safe place and with company until a doctor arrived", according to the judge.
They also accused Payne's representative, Nores, of leaving Payne on his own in the hotel in a "state of vulnerability", despite knowing about Payne's previous addiction problems and the fact Nores could "not trust that the rest of the hotel staff would act appropriately".
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The judge described Payne's death as "foreseeable".
The prosecutor's office previously ruled out self-harm as a factor in the One Direction star's death, and said he did not adopt a reflex posture to protect himself from the fall, meaning it can be inferred he may have fallen "in a state of semi or total unconsciousness".
The document released on Monday reiterated the hypothesis that Payne had "tried to leave the room through the balcony and thus fell".
The results of toxicology tests revealed that before his death, Payne had traces of alcohol, cocaine and a prescription antidepressant in his body.
According to the post-mortem examination, Payne died from "multiple" injuries and internal and external bleeding.
(c) Sky News 2025: Waiter charged with supplying drugs to Liam Payne arrested - local media
