Liam Payne's Friend Roger Nores Cleared of Manslaughter Charges

Liam Payne's friend Roger Nores is off the hook in the criminal case of the One Direction singer's drug-fueled death in Argentina, TMZ has confirmed.

Prosecutors originally charged Nores with manslaughter for allegedly abandoning Liam just prior to the star plunging to his death from a hotel balcony in Buenos Aries last October, while he was under the influence of alcohol and narcotics.

But, on Wednesday, the judges dropped the manslaughter charge against Nores and two hotel workers after the court ruled there was nothing the trio could have done to save Liam.

Nores breathed a sigh of relief, telling TMZ, "Happy this is finally over."

You may recall ... Nores and the two hotel employees -- Gilda Martin and Esteban Grassi -- were among five people charged in December as police were investigating the case. The other two men -- Ezequiel Pereyra and Braian Paiz -- were accused of selling drugs to Liam and are currently locked up in jail awaiting trial.

Toxicology tests showed Liam had a drug cocktail in his system, which included cocaine, crack and ketamine, as well as alcohol.

In Wednesday's court ruling, the judges said Nores had no role in Liam “obtaining and consuming alcohol” -- and could not have stopped Payne's fall from the balcony.

The judges also said Nores could have possibly prevented Liam from buying the drugs and alcohol that made him intoxicated if he had stayed with the singer at all times during their stay in the country.

But, the judges ruled that even if Nores had taken those extreme precautions, Liam would have gotten his hands on the substances anyway as is common among addicts.