SYDNEY, NOV 23: Just hours before he apparently hanged himself in a Sydney hotel, INXS lead singer Michael Hutchence made plans to meet somebody later that day, police said today.

Police investigating the death said they have interviewed a woman who said Hutchence called her about 0930 hrs local time yesterday and that they had arranged to meet later.

The singer's body was found by a hotel worker in his fifth floor room at the Ritz Carlton shortly before noon. Police took into their possession a leather belt and some prescription drugs.

They said there were no suspicious circumstances in the death.

There was a phone call with a friend. ``We know who it is but are not releasing the name. It plays no other purpose other than help us pinpoint the time of death,'' Inspector Dennis Smith said today.

The death has sent shock waves through Australia's entertainment industry and around the globe.

Other band members, who were waiting for Hutchence to arrive at a television studio when news of the death broke, issued a statement today.

``The band members of INXS are all in extreme shock at the loss of their dear friend and lead singer Michael Hutchence,'' they said. They asked that the band and family's privacy be respected ``in this time of extreme grief.''Hutchence's fiancee Paula Yates and their 16-month-old daughter Heavenly Hiraani Tiger Lily were flying from London to Sydney, where they were expected to arrive early tomorrow.

Yates' lawyer Anthony Burton said ``she is deeply upset and devastated''. He informed that It was her intention to go to Australia as soon as possible with their daughter Tiger Lily.

She knew of no reason for the death, he said.

Hutchence, 37, had flown from London to his hometown of Sydney last week to prepare for the band's 20th anniversary Lose your Head tour, which was due to Tuesday. Promoter Michael Gudinski said the tour has been cancelled.Tributes flowed for Hutchence, who, Prime Minister John Howard said, was ``one of the outstanding products in rock of the past generation.''Deputy Prime Minister Tim Fischer said he hoped fans would not be influenced by the suicide. ``What a waste. I hope there are no copycat examples,'' he said.

Copyright © 1997 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.