On Oct. 22, 2024, accompanied by a psych. and an interp., Geoff Payne presented himself to testify as a witness before pros. Andrés Madrea, in charge of clarifying the death of his son Liam, who 8 days earlier had fallen from the balc. of his room on the 3rd fl. of the CasaSur 🏨
Payne Sr. had arrived in B.A. less than 48 hrs after the news of the death, which occurred on Wed. 16 in the aft.
Shortly after landing, with Liam’s body still in the Jud. Morgue, he visited the CasaSur, where fans of the grp. 1D who loved their son in life set up a vigil. They erected a sanct. there.
Payne Sr., in a sports jkt., visited him, stunned, in front of the candles, photos, and stuffed animals, but with a gesture perhaps of peace. He kissed his rt. hand, as if kissing the memory of his son in the air.
Thus, the 63-year-old Eng. man remained in B.A., waiting for news in the case led by Pros. Madrea and for Judge Laura Bruniard to decide on the repat. of the body, staying at the Casa Lucía hotel on Arroyo St., surrounded by custodians.
Meanwhile, the news of the scandal surrounding the death emerged one after another: the c*c**ne, al*oh**, and the powerful antidepressant sertraline found in his son’s body that, combined, likely caused the mental health crisis leading to his death;
the 2 pr*stit*tes from El Talar and Isidro Casanova who had called CasaSur for sex hrs before he died; and the Arg. businessman who accompanied Liam, whom Geoff Payne knew well.
Payne Sr. and son had a pleasant, fluid relationship before death: they saw each other monthly in Ldn., at the singer’s house, to play all afternoon with Bear, the son of the ex-1D member, Geoff’s grandson. He knew his son was an addict.
They had last seen each other on 29 Aug. last yr. in Mcr. for the singer’s bday. “He was fine, stable, clean,” he said in his testimony in B.A. However, according to his statement, he didn’t know everything. He told investigators that Liam planned to stay only 5 days in Arg.
Also, that the ex-1D singer didn’t have a phone.
"Liam didn't have his own cell phone and it was his decision, in recent years he changed his cell phone numerous times. He decided to be disconnected as a method of protection to avoid social networks and also to stay away from the possibility of reoffending his addictions.
That decision was his personal and had all the support from the family group, personally, I agreed that it was really a way to take care of himself for him."
It was not like that: Liam, in Argentina, had his cell phone, which he used, for example, to contact prostitutes on WhatsApp. He was kidnapped by the City Police after his death and appraised by order of the Justice.
Geoff, then, depended on intermediaries to know about his son. "For that reason my telephone contact with Liam was not direct, it was always through third parties," he said.
Then, he identified them with name and surname: Kate Cassidy, Liam's girlfriend, and businessman Rogelio Nores, alias "Roger"."They were in his care because of his addictions.
To Kate for love and Roger because he accompanied and took care of Liam in these last months and reported his state to me."
I was at home with my wife. He called me at 5:23 p.m. B.A. time, but I didn’t see the call until about an hr later. In the meantime, he called me again and sent a msg to call him ASAP.
When I saw all those calls at 6:18 p.m. here, I called him back,” according to his testimony, which Infobae accessed.
-What happened?, asked Geoff Payne.
-An accident happened, Nores replied: It's true, it's true.
-Is he dead?! Is he dead?!
-You have to come to Argentina.
-An accident happened, Nores replied: It's true, it's true.
-Is he dead?! Is he dead?!
-You have to come to Argentina.
Then, Geoff Payne contacted his daughters, Liam's older sisters: they already knew it, like the rest of the world. Nores called him in the meantime, over and over again. The singer's father, this time, did not return the contact.
Minutes later, Liam's personal assistant in London looked for a ticket to Buenos Aires, on the first available flight.
Today, "Roger" Nores is being prosecuted by Judge Laura Bruniard for the manslaughter of Liam, along with four other defendants, pointed out by Judge Laura Bruniard for selling cocaine to the singer and guaranteeing his death with his recklessness.
Nores was defined as "a guarantor" of Liam in his stay in the country. Before the judge, in a written defense, the businessman denied any formal role with the former One Direction, to which he was only joined by a bond of friendship, without any contract involved.
According to the head of reception Esteban Grassi, also prosecuted for the manslaughter, Nores presented himself in the CasaSur as "Payne's manager." This was marked, for example, by an internal email from the hotel delivered by the accused, published yesterday by this medium.
Payne father would know Nores well in mid-2024. The businessman appears strongly in a moment of crisis. "We managed to maintain it, stabilize it, but Liam was not improving. It was stable but it wasn't getting better.
At that time, Liam received calls from Roger, I didn't know who he was," he continued. The businessman, said Payne Sr., offered to support the former One Direction "in exchange for nothing."
Thus, they traveled to Wellington, Florida, an hour and a half away from Miami airport, the key polo point in the United States, where a friend of Nores controlled several sports courts.
"We stayed 10 weeks there with Liam, the four of us.
"We stayed 10 weeks there with Liam, the four of us.
During that time we formed a team with Roger and the bodyguard for Liam's recovery, always monitored by psychologists and psychiatrists, all of Roger's contacts so I now do not have his data. Liam's girlfriend came and went."
However, simple friendship would then change, at least, according to Payne father.
The link between Nores and Liam, as the case went on, would become a key to the imputation.
Payne father said:
“The two of them had a friendly relationship.
Payne father said:
“The two of them had a friendly relationship.
It is true that Roger this year managed meetings for Liam to enter the labor market again, but he said that he did it to help him, not for something in return or with a contract in between, he was just looking for his relationships.
I also noticed lately that Roger was directing Liam to develop more in business than in his artistic part. This change of direction in Liam's work was not flattering for him, because what he liked to do and did him good was making music," he said.
Here, another piece on the board comes into play, which was not imputed by Justice: Nores' supposed girlfriend.
"Liam knew that I thought it was wrong to leave the music for the investments. When I met Roger, he was focused on
"Liam knew that I thought it was wrong to leave the music for the investments. When I met Roger, he was focused on
Liam's well-being and believed it was genuine; then, Roger changed his focus when he tried to integrate his girlfriend into the circle of trust we had with Liam, his girlfriend, the bodyguard and me." The bride even showed up in Wellington.
In the end, Payne father didn't even know which hotel Liam was staying at before his death.
Geoff Payne did not point to "the bride" with name and surname.
Geoff Payne did not point to "the bride" with name and surname.
However, the name of a woman close to Nores is repeated in the case: that of pop singer Lourdes Miranda, whose computer was kidnapped by the City Police. Nores tried to recover it in Court No. 34 in charge of Bruniard with a dozen crescents for the judicial staff, without success
.
In the internal email of the CasaSur hotel, Miranda appears named as "assistant manager."
Lourdes' nickname is "Lula". On the Wednesday of Liam's death, "a friend or girlfriend of his, 'Lula' also sent me messages expressing her condolences,
In the internal email of the CasaSur hotel, Miranda appears named as "assistant manager."
Lourdes' nickname is "Lula". On the Wednesday of Liam's death, "a friend or girlfriend of his, 'Lula' also sent me messages expressing her condolences,
I don't know how he got my number because I never gave it to him, surely Roger gave it to him," said Payne father.
Source: Infobae
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