Harry O'Brien claims draw police attention WHILE the exile from senior football of troubled Magpie Harry O'Brien may last only a fortnight, the Collingwood star's plea for privacy from the press does not extend to dodging questions from police. During an off-the-cuff interview on Tuesday about the "demons" he was facing, O'Brien disclosed he was struggling to cope with being a witness to a murder in Brazil on Christmas Day in 2011. While O'Brien had earlier spoken of the toll the event had taken on his mental health and form throughout last season, he raised the interest of police when he said he feared for his safety from those responsible for the murder. Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Ken Lay said although the force had so far received no contact from the Brazilian police regarding O'Brien, officers still planned to talk to him when Collingwood felt the star defender was up to speaking about the experience. The Harry O'Brien situation, I really feel for. Harry's obviously going through some really difficult circumstances so I don't want to make any comment at all about the circumstances," Mr Lay told 3AW. He'll work his way through it, but clearly there's some conversations around something he may well have witnessed in Rio de Janeiro. O'Brien told a youth forum earlier this year that he had gone to the aid of a man who crashed into a light pole near a ghetto in which he still has relatives, only to find the driver had been shot in the neck. The 2010 All Australian, who led his teammates on to the training track yesterday, has been publicly supported by members of the Collingwood leadership group from which he has been removed in order to allow him to focus on his wellbeing. While Collingwood captain Nick Maxwell said O'Brien's decision to go public with his troubles surprised all at Collingwood, he was privately aware that the 26-year-old was struggling. O'Brien had initially insisted that the Magpies not reveal the true reason for his absence from the club, a position that only served to raise interest in the reason behind it. Collingwood vice-captain Scott Pendlebury said his teammates had been aware that O'Brien was dealing with serious issues. He feels the defender's decision to raise his plight publicly will assist him. "A lot of the guys know what Harry is dealing with," Pendlebury said. AFL Players Association chief executive Matt Finnis also denied that the O'Brien situation had come as a surprise. "They weren't a shock because I've been aware that Harry's had some personal issues he's been dealing with for some time now," Finnis said. Pendlebury believes O'Brien could return to Collingwood's senior side as soon as next week's match against the Gold Coast Suns.