NO FATAL DRUGS LINK: ABLETT

FOOTBALL legend Gary Ablett has told police he had no connection with
the drugs that killed a 20-year-old woman who collapsed in his luxury
hotel suite.A source close to the investigation said Ablett was
"highly unlikely" to face charges over the death of Geelong woman
Alisha Keely Horan.

The source said the Homicide Squad had not been called in to examine
the matter, indicating that police investigators did not believe the
former AFL superstar played a role in the death.

Horan died of an apparent overdose in a suite at the exclusive Park
Hyatt in Melbourne last week. Ablett, who gave an extensive statement
to the police on Saturday, called an ambulance for Ms Horan.

Horan's father, Alan, has been told his daughter died from a cocktail
of amphetamines and a drug containing morphine, but the results of
toxicology tests are not expected for several weeks.

The source said Ablett was unlikely to be interviewed by police
again.

Horan was reportedly infatuated with the reclusive star, plastering
pictures of Ablett over her bedroom wall as a teenager. They were seen
together on February 11 drinking at the Wild Westcoast Saloon in Geelong.

Horan's stepmother Pauline said Horan had been a fan of Ablett's and
was friendly with the footballer's daughter.

Asked how the relationship developed, Pauline said: "I think he was
pursuing her, actually, from what I have heard, over the last couple
of years, but we have only recently heard that."

Pauline said she told Horan she had reservations about her friendship
with Ablett, who in his playing days was referred to by fans as "God".

"I have never thought of him as God," she said. "I said that to
Alisha. I never liked the man . . . I just didn't like him."

Pauline said Horan's reaction was to "just laugh".

"She's just a beautiful girl."

Pauline said the family had not heard from Ablett since Horan's death,
though "common decency" would have suggested it.

A weekend statement issued through Ablett's lawyer said he was
"profoundly upset".