A man being investigated in relation to Liam Payne's death has spoken out to deny he supplied the One Direction star with drugs.
Waiter Braian Nahuel Paiz claimed he met Liam twice in his hotel before he died on October 16. He claimed they took drugs together, but that he never supplied him or accepted any money from him.
The 24-year-old spoke on Argentinian television over the weekend, claiming they exchanged contact details after he met Liam at a restaurant he was working at. At the time, he said Liam was dining with others.
READ MORE: Liam Payne police statement in full as one cause of death ruled out
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According to Braian, Liam communicated with him using an Instagram account. He also confirmed his home had been searched, but that he had not yet been spoken to by investigators.
He told journalist Guillermo Panizza, I never supplied Liam with drugs. Liam's first contact with me was at my place of work.
"We swapped details and saw each other later that night. It was all normal. He came down from his hotel room to fetch me because I had got lost."
He continued: “We got together there and he showed me some of the music he was going to bring out. I’ve heard people saying he was taking drugs, but the truth is that when he got to the restaurant where I was working he was already under the effects of drugs and he didn’t actually eat anything."
Braian went on to claim that the second night he spent with Liam, the singer took cocaine while Braian smoked marijuana. He said: "We took drugs together, but I never took drugs to him or accepted any money."
He claimed that he had no idea who the two other people being investigated in relation to Liam's death were. He also claimed that "nothing made any sense" when he saw the photos from inside Liam's hotel room.
"The Dove soap packet was there when I was in the hotel but I couldn't understand what it was for or the candles or the glass of water," he claimed.
During the interview, Braian was not asked about Liam's missing Rolex watch. The waiter has reportedly been fired from his job due to the investigation.
Another person being investigated, Liam's friend Rogelio "Roger" Nores, spoke out last week after he was named as one of the three people. He said: "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 17 as a witness and I haven't spoken to any police officer or prosecutor ever since. I wasn't Liam's manager. He was just my very dear friend."
He added: “I’m really heart-broken with this tragedy, and I've been missing my friend every day.”
The third person is yet to speak out. Prosecutors said last week that the three men, who they did not name, were being formally investigated on suspicion of abandoning a person who subsequently died and supplying and facilitating drugs.
They have ruled out the claim that Liam took his own life, saying he was in a state of "semi or total unconsciousness" when he fell, adding that he "didn't know what he was doing". Alcohol, cocaine and antidepressants were found in Liam's system at the time of his death.
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