Liam Payne's Pal Roger Nores Sues Late Singer's Dad for Defamation

Liam Payne's longtime friend Roger Nores filed a defamation lawsuit against the late One Direction bandmember's father, Geoff Payne, over remarks he made publicly following his son's shocking death.

The legal documents claimed Geoff told authorities in Buenos Aires that Roger had "full responsibility" for Liam's care "during this last period when I was not there."

"Geoff needs to backtrack on his sworn statement as he very well knows I wasn't Liam's nurse or care taker," Roger said in a statement to a news outlet. "Liam, who I miss every day, was my dear friend and an independent, brilliant, respectful free man who did whatever he wanted whenever he wanted."

In the court documents, Roger further alleged his pal's former bodyguard Bledar Vata had served as a "paid caretaker" to the singer, but was later fired.

"Geoff, as self-declared caretaker of Liam, never provided for a temporary or new bodyguard caretaker," the filing said.

Roger also alleged Geoff did not share email correspondences between himself and the grieving father that reportedly revealed Roger had told him he "could not further as a friend devote the same time to support Liam" amid his addiction battle.

Additionally, Roger claimed he asked Geoff to visit Liam in Florida in September 2024, but as far as he is aware, he never arrived to care for his son.

Elsewhere in the legal filing, Roger addressed the allegedly false information Geoff gave to police — which was later featured in the documentary Liam Payne: Who's to Blame? — about him supposedly contributing to Liam's addiction.

Per the lawsuit, Roger stated he "never provided Liam with any recreational drugs and never controlled any prescribed medications taken by Liam."

As OK! previously reported, Liam tragically died on October 16, 2024, after falling from a balcony at his Buenos Aires hotel. Medical examiners confirmed he had cocaine, benzodiazepine, crack and "pink cocaine" in his system at the time.

Roger was later charged with manslaughter after leaving Payne alone at the hotel shortly before he died. However, he's firmly denied the allegations.

"I never abandoned Liam, I went to his hotel three times that day and left 40 minutes before this happened," he explained last November. "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."

TMZ reported the details of the legal filing and Roger's statement.