A chilling last photo has emerged of an Australian rugby star enjoying a night out in a packed Spanish nightclub, hours before he snuck into an off-limits area of the venue and mysteriously fell 30ft to his death.
Liam Hampson, 24, was pictured in the background of a photograph taken at the Sala Apolo music club in Barcelona only a few hours before he vanished at 4.30am local time on Tuesday.
Hampson, who played for the Australian rugby team Redcliffe Dolphins, was found dead inside the nightclub by staff – he had laid there undiscovered for nearly 30 hours.
Questions were raised about how it took 30 hours to locate Hampson’s body and the regional police in Barcelona today said Hampson’s body was found inside an internal patio which was not part of the public area of the nightclub.
A spokesman from the regional Mossos d’Esquadra police force said: ‘I don’t know how he would have got into that part of the building but he accessed it and from there fell around 10 metres to an internal patio.
‘The fact it wasn’t a public area helps to explain why the workers who raised the alarm didn’t do so until Wednesday lunchtime local time.’
Now, an image has emerged of Hampson, who had been travelling in Europe with a group including National Rugby League players, smiling and wearing one of his favourite caps in the background of a photograph of rugby player Jordan Riki kissing a woman on the cheek.
Hampson later became separated from his friends when they left the nightclub in the early hours of Tuesday morning and he was reported missing.
Liam Hampson, 24, is pictured (right) during his night out at Spanish nightclub Sala Apolo – just hours before he vanished at 4.30am on Tuesday
The rising rugbystar is pictured with his mother Lorna Morton on Mother’s Day this year
Hampson, 24, had been on a night out at the Sala Apolo music club in Barcelona (pictured) only a few hours before he vanished at 4.30am local time on Tuesday
Hampson, who played for the Australian rugby team Redcliffe Dolphins, was found dead on the floor of the nightclub – he had laid there undiscovered for nearly 30 hours
A spokesman for the regional Mossos d’Esquadra police force in Barcelona told Daily Mail Australia workers at the nightclub had found Hampson’s ‘lifeless body’ after he mysteriously fell 30ft.
‘Officers started working on trying to identify the person and quickly established it was an Australian national who had already been formally reported as missing,’ he said.
‘Everything is pointing at this stage towards the death being accidental and the result of a fall of around 10 metres.’
The policeman couldn’t confirm the circumstances of how Hampson fell, whether it was from a window, corridor or down the stairs, only saying the height was about 30ft.
Well-placed sources said they expected the post-mortem to take place in the coming hours.
The results of autopsies are not normally made public in Spain and in this instance will be sent directly to the court probing Hampson’s death.
Earlier, a spokeswoman for Apolo Sala declined to comment on Hampson’s death, saying they had been instructed to ‘say nothing’ by regional Mossos d’Esquadra police.
The spokeswoman said: ‘We cannot say anything. The Mossos d’Esquadra have told us we can’t say anything until they release an official statement.’
Liam Hampson was found dead on the floor by venue staff at Barcelona nightclub Sala Apolo (pictured). He reportedly fell from a height of 30ft
The haunting last picture comes as new details have emerged about the frantic 30-hour search to find Hampson as friends and family from Australia and in Spain joined forces to locate the young man.
In the hours after Hampson’s ‘very out of character’ disappearance, his sister Tiarna had posted on social media asking people in Barcelona to ‘please look out for Liam’.
She said the alarm was raised when he could not be located after the group left Sala Apolo early on Tuesday morning.
‘He was last seen after leaving a nightclub with friends and then [they] lost each other,’ she wrote.
Friends on the Europe trip also flocked to online to share a missing person post, showing Hampson in his last known outfit – a cap, black shirt and beige shorts.
‘Hasn’t been able to be contacted and no one [has] seen him for 24 hours,’ Riki posted on Instagram.
‘Any info would be greatly appreciated.’
Hampson’s sister Tiarna remained hopeful her brother was safe in a post on Facebook on Wednesday
But the search came to a tragic end when Hampson’s body was found in the club.
Tributes have flowed for Hampson as devastated loved ones confirmed the news of his death online.
‘Waking up to the news no one wants to hear, we are devastated to find out that Liam had an accident and sadly has not survived,’ his dad Brett posted on Facebook.
‘We are heartbroken to say the least. Liam had a heart of gold and was a much loved son, brother, grandson, uncle and friend. Words can not express our grief.
‘We can not thank his mates enough for being there with Liam having the time of his life and assisting in the search for our boy. Our thoughts are with them.’
Liam Hampson (right) in Paris watching Lionel Messi play football
Liam Hampson (right) was travelling across Europe with NRL star AJ Brimson (left) and other mates. Pictured are the pair enjoying the sights of Amsterdam
Just hours after issuing a desperate appeal to find him, Tiarna wrote a similar tribute.
‘We are so broken,’ she posted.
‘Liam was the best brother I ever could of asked for and made me a better person. We cannot express our grief.
‘We cannot thank the boys he was travelling with enough for assisting with his search and made sure his last days were the best of his life.
Liam Hampson (far right) with his Aussie mates during the European trip. Police are treating his death as a tragic accident
‘Going to miss you so much, Liam.’
The family has requested privacy as they deal with the heartbreaking loss.
Hampson and his group of friends have posted dozens of photos from their adventure-packed travels in the past month, including snaps from Paris, Ibiza, Amsterdam, Munich and Positano in Italy.
Hampson played hooker for the Redcliffe Dolphins and recently helped steered his side to the Queensland Cup grand final, where they were narrowly beaten 16-10 by the Norths Devils.
The Dolphins will make their National Rugby League debut next season under the helm of coaching legend Wayne Bennett.
Hampson is not among the club’s top tier squad.