By Kylie Madry
BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) – Singer Liam Payne, who shot to fame as a member of boy band One Direction in the early 2010s, died on Wednesday after falling from the third floor of his hotel in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
His death shocked fans across the world, leaving them asking how Payne’s death had occurred.
Here is what we know about his final days and hours.
THE 911 CALL
Authorities were first alerted on Wednesday afternoon about a guest staying at the CasaSur hotel in Buenos Aires’ posh Palermo neighborhood who was acting erratically.
“He is intoxicated, on drugs and alcohol,” said the hotel receptionist, who identified himself as Esteban, in a 911 call shared with Reuters by the Buenos Aires security ministry, who confirmed that the call related to Payne.
“Come quickly,” Esteban said. “We are a little afraid that he will do something that will put his life at risk,” he added, mentioning the hotel room’s balcony.
Read the full 911 call transcript here.
Minutes after the call Payne fell to his death at around 5.07 p.m. local time (2007 GMT), according to a reconstruction of the incident by prosecutors.
WHAT HAPPENED AFTER AUTHORITIES ARRIVED?
Emergency services showed up at the hotel only minutes after to find that Payne had already fallen to his death from the third floor into the hotel’s inner courtyard.
“There was nothing we could do,” Alberto Crescenti, the head of Buenos Aires’ SAME emergency services body, told local media. “His injuries were incompatible with life.”
Police said they recovered a bottle of whiskey, a lighter and a cell phone from the courtyard where Payne fell, suggesting he may have been holding them at the time of his death.
Payne’s body was taken to the morgue for an autopsy later that evening, after news of his death had spread. Fans gathered outside the hotel to mourn.
The preliminary autopsy revealed Payne had died from multiple traumas and internal bleeding due to the fall. Pending tests will reveal if alcohol or drugs were in Payne’s system.
PAYNE’S HOTEL ROOM
Police then searched the singer’s room, which they said was in “total disarray.”
Authorities seized over-the-counter medications, energy packs and anxiety drug Clonazepam from the room. They also recovered a notebook and a passport, and fingerprints were taken, they said.
Prosecutors later said that the initial search also uncovered what appeared to be narcotics as well as alcohol from the room and that objects and furniture had been destroyed.
Shortly after Payne’s death, local media began circulating images purportedly taken by hotel staff of Payne’s room, showing a broken television, a glass of champagne and burnt aluminum foil alongside a white powder.
While the images appear to have been taken at the CasaSur hotel, Reuters was unable to independently verify that the photos had been taken in Payne’s room.
WHAT CAUSED PAYNE’S FALL?
Authorities said that the singer was likely alone when he fell. His injuries did not suggest he had taken a defensive position, either from another person or to protect himself from the impact of the fall, according to the autopsy.
“He may have fallen while in a state of semi-consciousness or total unconsciousness,” the prosecutor report said.
WHAT’S NEXT?
Authorities are still awaiting test results to determine what substances, if any, Payne had taken before his death.
They are also working to reconstruct Payne’s final hours after taking testimony from five witnesses, according to prosecutors.
Authorities interviewed three hotel workers and two women who had been with Payne in the hours before his death, though they had left the hotel earlier.
Investigators are also looking into the “possible involvement of third parties in the event’s prior to the victim’s death.”
WHY WAS PAYNE IN ARGENTINA?
In the hours before his death, Payne – or someone from his team – had posted to social media platform Snapchat about his stay in Argentina with girlfriend Kate Cassidy.
Payne talked about how he planned to ride horses and play polo, but that he was looking forward to return home to the dog the couple recently fostered, Nala.
The videos, however, appear to have been posted several days after they were recorded, as Cassidy has also posted videos documenting her return to the United States.
Payne had been spotted at former bandmate Niall Horan’s concert in Buenos Aires earlier this month.
ONE DIRECTION
The singer was known for his stint in one of the most popular boy bands of all time, One Direction. Simon Cowell brought the group – Payne, Horan, Zayn Malik, Louis Tomlinson and Harry Styles – together after each failed to pass an individual stage on the U.K. version of the X Factor in 2010.
They finished in third place in the competition, but their career post-show was a global success, touring the world with hits such as their breakout single “What Makes You Beautiful.”
The group called it quits in 2016, a year after Malik’s shock departure from the group during a tour through Asia.
Each singer then went on to launch a solo career, with Payne known for his song “Strip Me Down.” He had spoken about his insecurities in comparing his solo success to his former bandmates’.
PAYNE’S HISTORY
The singer had spoken openly about his struggles with mental health and using alcohol to cope with the pressures of fame.
Last year, Payne said he had checked into a rehabilitation facility, staying there for just over three months.
“I kind of became somebody who I didn’t really recognize anymore,” he said in a YouTube video in July 2023.
He said getting sober was motivated by his desire to better his relationship with his son, Bear, with ex-partner Cheryl Cole of Girls Aloud.
REACTION
“We are heartbroken by the sad passing of Liam Payne,” the X Factor posted on social media. “He was immensely talented and, as part of One Direction, Liam will leave a lasting legacy on the music industry and fans around the world.”
“Just a boy,” Styles’ mother Anne posted on Instagram, with a photo of a broken heart emoji.
“This news is devastating,” wrote singer Olly Murs, who had toured with One Directions “We always had a good laugh when we saw each other. … Liam shared the same passions as me, the same dreams.”
(Reporting by Kylie Madry; Additional reporting by Eliana Raszewski; Editing by Adam Jourdan and Mark Porter)
