Police investigating the death of Liam Payne were today pouring over newly collected hotel CCTV to determine whether he received a drug delivery.
Officers also began examining the One Direction singer’s mobile phone to determine who he was in contact with in the hours before he fell from his room's balcony in Buenos Aires.
The development comes as officials from the public prosecutor's office met with Liam’s father, Geoff Payne, who is in Argentina.
Andrés Esteban Madrea told him that toxicology and histopathological exams have not yet been completed, although once the results have been received, the 31-year-old's body can be released to his family.
A source told the Mirror: “It is a painstaking investigation. As the eyes of the world are still wanting to know about Liam’s death, Madrea knows everything from CCTV and phone records to Liam’s post-mortem must done with precision. He has told his staff no stone must be left unturned and that the investigation will be led where the evidence takes them. He has personally vowed to Geoff that if criminality is found in any way, those responsible will face the full force of the law.”
According to local reports, an initial toxicology report found the presence of cocaine in Liam’s body at the time of his death.
The preliminary exam was handed to local prosecutors, but they stressed it did not offer an accurate reading of how much of the drug was circulating in his blood when he died.
Police found what appeared to be drugs and alcohol strewn around broken and burnt objects and furniture in the singer’s hotel room, leading the public prosecution to believe he had suffered a substance abuse-induced breakdown around the time of his fall. The prosecution said Liam could have been in a state of "semi or total unconsciousness" when he fell.
The father-of-one suffered "extremely serious injuries" after landing in the courtyard of the CasaSur Hotel in the trendy Palmero neighbourhood of Buenos Aires last Wednesday. Minutes before his death, the hotel's desk manager told a 911 operator there was "a guest drunk with drugs and alcohol" who was "breaking everything in the room”. Moments later, Liam was found on the floor of the hotel’s restaurant after falling 45ft from his third-floor balcony.
*Frank offers confidential advice about drugs and addiction (email frank@talktofrank.com, message 82111 or call 0300 123 6600) or the NHS has information about getting help.
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