Liam Payne’s Accused Drug Dealer Speaks Out After Arrest

One of three suspects charged in connection with Liam Payne‘s death has denied allegations of drug dealing in his first public statement. Braian Nahuel Paiz, a 24-year-old waiter accused by Argentinian authorities of supplying narcotics to the former One Direction singer, spoke to local media while maintaining his innocence in Saturday’s interview.

Speaking to Telefe Notifica and journalist Guillermo Panizza, Paiz admitted to two hotel meetings with Payne but denied providing drugs or receiving payment, according to TMZ. “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,” per The Mirror US.

Paiz described their initial meeting on Oct. 2 at his restaurant workplace in Puerto Madero, where Payne was dining with his girlfriend, Kate Cassidy, and two others. “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,” Paiz stated. “There was a moment when he approached me and asked me for my contact details. I gave him an Instagram and afterwards he sent me messages because he wanted to take drugs although he had already consumed narcotics.”

Their first hotel encounter occurred that same night at the Hyatt in Palermo. “While I was in his room we had some whisky shots,” Paiz recalled, according to the outlet. “We got together there and he showed me some of the music he was going to bring out.”

Their final meeting took place on Oct. 13 at CasaSur Palermo Hotel: “We spent the night together, we consumed drugs because the truth is that something intimate happened. I stayed there all night. I consumed marijuana and he consumed cocaine, the cocaine that’s in all the photos that came out after his death. He was separating it and cleaning it before smoking it. I didn’t say anything to him about it because he seemed normal to me.”

Describing Payne’s demeanor, Paiz noted, “He wasn’t aggressive at all, he behaved really well with me, he was really sweet. He asked me if I was okay. I’ve got all the messages where we arranged that second meeting. I haven’t erased anything.”

The waiter recounted their final interaction, saying Payne offered him clothing as a memento: “When I left he wanted to give me some clothes so that I had a memory of being with him but I left it behind the TV because I didn’t want to take it. It was some grey jogging bottoms and a T-shirt.”

The Mirror US reported that Paiz added that Payne later attempted to arrange another meeting: “I told Liam a best friend of mine wanted to meet him because he was a fan. He said ‘yes’ and after I went he appeared outside the place where I lived and managed to get halfway into the building and wanted us to go back to his hotel but I told him I couldn’t because I had to go to work. I was due to start at 11.30 a.m. but I had to arrive beforehand. That was the last time I saw him. He got into his taxi and left.”

Payne died on Oct. 16 after falling from his third-floor hotel balcony. Paiz expressed skepticism about the circumstances, stating Payne “didn’t seem like the type to act recklessly,” and suggesting he doesn’t believe the singer intentionally went over the balcony, per TMZ.

According to Paiz, while Payne offered him money, he “never accepted anything” from the singer. Two other suspects face charges in the investigation: an unnamed “friend” who was present in Payne’s hotel room and a hotel housekeeper who allegedly delivered drugs concealed in a soap box.