The former One Direction singer died in Argentina on Wednesday. “Liam James Payne, singer-songwriter and guitarist, former member of the group One Direction, died today after falling from the third floor of a hotel in Palermo,” police said in a press release. Palermo is a district in the Argentine capital.
The head of the emergency service, Alberto Crescenti, said on local television that the musician suffered serious injuries after his fall and that only his death could be confirmed. “There was no longer any possibility of resuscitation.” Payne is said to have fallen from a height of 13 to 14 metres. (Read more below the photo)
Police and fans at the hotel. — © REUTERS
Crescenti says emergency services received a call to the Casa Sur hotel, in the Palermo district, at 5:04 p.m. local time (10:04 p.m. in Belgium). When they arrived seven minutes later, a team “determined the man’s death” and “later we discovered that he was a singer in a group.”
Buenos Aires Municipal Security Ministry spokesman Pablo Policicchio told The Associated Press that Payne had “thrown himself off the balcony of his room.” He said police were sent to the hotel after an emergency call about an “aggressive man who may have been under the influence of drugs or alcohol”. Upon arrival, police found his body in the hotel courtyard, Policchio said. (Read more below the photo)
© REUTERS
The head of the state’s emergency medical services, Alberto Crescenti, declined to confirm whether Payne jumped from the balcony or fell accidentally. He said on Argentine TV channel Todo Noticias that authorities were investigating the circumstances of his death and conducting an autopsy.
Bandmate visited in Argentina
Payne, together with Harry Styles, Niall Horan, Zayn Malik and Louis Tomlinson, was a member of One Direction, the boy band that formed in 2010 and enjoyed enormous success. The announcement that the group would be taking a break in 2016 shocked millions of fans. Officially the group never split.
Payne released his first solo album, LP1, in 2019, in addition to two EPs in 2018 and 2020. In March this year he released the song Teardrops, which was to be the first single from his second solo studio album.
Liam Payne (second from right) with One Direction in 2011. — © AP
Payne attended a concert by his former bandmate Niall Horan in Buenos Aires on October 2.
Payne had previously shared a video on social media in which he announced he was going to Argentina to say hello to Niall Horan. Liam then admitted that it had been a while since he spoke to Niall. “We have a lot to talk about and I would like to clear a few things up with the boy. No bad feelings or anything, just, we need to talk.” Words that gave One Direction fans hope for a reunion of the band.
However, some fans reacted with concern to videos of Payne at Horan’s concert, where they said he acted strangely. However, Liam Payne himself made it clear on Snapchat that he enjoyed the evening and the reunion with Horan. (Read more below the post)
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Earlier on Wednesday, shortly before his death, he posted on Snapchat about his stay in Argentina, according to the Reuters news agency. He talked about riding horses, playing polo and looking forward to returning home and seeing his dog. “It’s a beautiful day here in Argentina,” he said in the video.
According to TMZ, Payne arrived in Argentina with his girlfriend Kate Cassidy at the end of September, but she left on October 14. He would have stayed behind for a while and checked into the Casa Sur hotel.
A hotel employee there reportedly called the police on Wednesday to request urgent help with an intoxicated guest. “When he is conscious, he destroys the whole room and you have to send someone,” he said, according to Reuters. The employee said the guest’s life was in danger because his room had a balcony.
TMZ and the New York Post report that witnesses saw him misbehaving in the hotel lobby earlier in the day. He allegedly smashed his laptop and was carried back to his room.
Son
The singer has struggled with health problems in recent years. For example, last year he had to cancel a planned tour in South America due to kidney problems. He previously admitted that he had spent months in rehab for alcohol addiction and mental problems.
READ ALSO. Ex-‘One Direction’ singer Liam Payne rushed to hospital while on holiday in Italy
Payne is survived by a son, Bear, whom he had in 2017 with his then-girlfriend Cheryl Cole, former singer of Girls Aloud.
If you are thinking of suicide and need a conversation, you can contact the Suicide Line on 1813 or via www.zelfmoord1813.be
