Liam Payne
Jeff Spicer/Getty Images for Atlantis The Royal
A cause of death has been revealed for the late singer Liam Payne, the former member of One Direction who fell from a hotel balcony in Buenos Aires yesterday.
According to a preliminary autopsy report, Payne died of “multiple trauma” and “internal and external hemorrhage,” as the result of the fall from the balcony of a third-floor room at the hotel in the neighborhood of Palermo where he was staying, the local Public Prosecutor’s Office revealed.
The prosecutor’s office said as a matter of protocol, the incident is being investigated as a “doubtful death,” even though it seems that the musician was alone when the fall occurred. The office said that Payne “was going through some kind of outbreak due to substance abuse.”
The prosecution said that, given the position in which the body was left and the injuries from the fall, it is presumed that Payne did not attempt to protect himself from the fall and could have been in a state of semi- or total unconsciousness.
According to the prosecutor’s report, police experts who surveyed the scene found substances inside Payne’s hotel room that appeared to “be narcotics and alcoholic beverages, as well as several destroyed objects and furniture.”
Five witnesses – three hotel workers and two women whe had been with the musician in his room earlier, but had left the hotel before Payne fell to his death – provided statements to prosecutors last night.
The prosecution said that “beyond reconstructing the circumstances of the musician’s death, the investigation is also aimed at determining the possible involvement of third parties in the events prior to the victim’s death.”
The 31-year-old Payne died at 5:07 p.m. on Wednesday after falling from the Casa Sur Hotel balcony and his body was taken to the city’s judicial morgue, where, that night, forensic medical professionals performed the autopsy, the prosecutor’s office said.
As reported earlier, hotel staff raised the alarm about Payne‘s apparently erratic behavior moments before his death, 911 calls have revealed.
A receptionist at the CasaSur Palermo hotel in Buenos Aires, Argentina, notified police that Payne’s life was in danger, according to a recording of two emergency calls.
The hotel alleged that Payne was intoxicated on drugs and alcohol, and had been trashing his room at the time of the disturbance. Staff called for urgent assistance.
Payne rose to fame as part of One Direction, the pop group formed by Simon Cowell on The X-Factor UK Season 7 in 2010 that also featured Harry Styles, Niall Horan, Louis Tomlinson and Zayn Malik. The group released five studio albums from 2011-15, all of which went platinum in the U.S. and hit No. 1 or No. 2 stateside and in the and UK and were Top 10 around the world.
The group scored four No. 1 singles in Great Britain: debut “What Makes You Beautiful,” “Little Things,” “One Way or Another (Teenage Kicks)” — whose video Payne directed — and “Drag Me Down.” Five others reached No. 2 in the country as One Direction became one of the top-selling boy bands ever.
Tributes have been pouring in from across the music and entertainment industries following news of Payne’s death.
In a statement, his family said: “We are heartbroken. Liam will forever live in our hearts and we’ll remember him for his kind, funny and brave soul. We are supporting each other the best we can as a family and ask for privacy and space at this awful time.”
