What we know about former One Direction member Liam Payne’s death

CNN
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Former One Direction band member Liam Payne died Wednesday at age 31 after falling from the third floor of the CasaSur Palermo hotel in Buenos Aires, Argentina, according to police. The exact circumstances of his death are currently being investigated.

Here’s what we know:

On Wednesday, hotel staff requested urgent police assistance shortly before Payne’s fall, according to a 911 call obtained by local CNN affiliate Todo Noticias.

Police said in a statement later in the day that staff rushed to the hotel shortly after 5 p.m. local time in response to a 911 alert about an “aggressive male who may be under the influence of drugs or alcohol.”

“We have a guest who is overwhelmed with drugs and alcohol,” the front desk manager said on the call. “He breaks things down. He tears the whole room apart.”

The manager said they “urgently need someone to be sent to us” as staff did not know “whether the guest’s life is in danger”.

Hotel staff were not allowed into the room where the guest had stayed for “two or three days,” the manager said in the call.

On Thursday, Argentine prosecutors said in a statement that they were investigating Payne’s case and that “everything indicates that the musician was alone when the fall occurred and that he was experiencing some episode due to drug abuse.”

On Wednesday, Buenos Aires police said in a statement to The Associated Press that Payne “jumped from the balcony of his room,” without elaborating on how that conclusion was reached or whether the jump was intentional.

When reached by CNN on Thursday, Buenos Aires police communications director Pablo Policicchio declined to comment to the AP and referred CNN to the prosecutor’s office for more information.

Payne’s injuries indicate he may not have been fully conscious at the time of his fall, the prosecutor’s report said. “Due to the position in which the body was found and the injuries sustained from the fall, it is suspected that Payne did not adopt a reflexive stance to protect himself and may have fallen into a state of semi- or total unconsciousness,” it said.

The prosecutor’s report added that a number of substances were seized in Payne’s hotel room in Buenos Aires that “could indicate previous alcohol and drug use.”

Photos of Payne’s hotel room released by Buenos Aires police showed a broken television.

While the investigation continues, prosecutors said the statements of five witnesses were used to reconstruct the events in the hours before Payne’s death. Prosecutor Marcelo Roma, in charge of the investigation, confirmed that the preliminary autopsy report determined that Payne’s death was due to “polytrauma,” or multiple serious injuries, as well as “internal and external bleeding” as a result of the fall. Authorities are conducting an autopsy.

In recent years, Payne has spoken publicly about struggling with his mental health and substance abuse.

On the 2019 Sky show Ant Middleton & Liam Payne: Straight Talking, he reflected on recurring feelings of loneliness, saying: “There are times when you feel such levels of loneliness every day and people feel get involved with you… every now and then you think: When is this going to end?”

“It almost killed me a few times,” he added.

Payne also spoke about dealing with alcoholism on The Diary of a CEO podcast in 2021, saying, “It was a problem” and had “really, really serious” aspects.

“It feels to me like we were in the band back then and the best way to protect ourselves, given the size of the band, was to just lock ourselves in our rooms. And of course, what’s in the room? Mini-bar. So at a certain point I thought I’d have a party – and that seemed to continue for many years of my life,” he added.

“It’s wild, but it was the only way to get rid of the frustration of the day,” he said.

CNN reporter shares details about former One Direction member Liam Payne’s death

Payne was born on August 29, 1993 in the English city of Wolverhampton and studied music technology at the City of Wolverhampton College.

He was still living in the area when he rose to fame on British TV competition show The X Factor. He first appeared on the show in 2008 as a 14-year-old and returned to audition for a second time two years later on the advice of Simon Cowell.

He won the hearts of young fans alongside Harry Styles, Niall Horan, Zayn Malik and Louis Tomlinson after they all joined forces to form One Direction on the show.

As they built a worldwide fan base for Directioners, the popular boy band became the first to have their first four albums debut at No. 1 on the Billboard 200. The group, also called 1D, sold more than 70 million records worldwide before disbanding in 2016.

The band was known for songs such as “What Makes You Beautiful,” “Best Song Ever,” “Story of My Life,” “Steal My Girl,” and “Night Changes,” and Payne’s solo songs include “Strip That Down (feat. Quavo), which reached No. 10 on the Billboard Hot 100, “Familiar” and “Bedroom Floor.” At the beginning of the year he released the song “Teardrops”.

Payne is survived by his 7-year-old son Bear, who he had with former Girls Aloud member and X Factor judge Cheryl Tweedy.

On Thursday, about 24 hours after news of his death broke, Payne’s former bandmates released a statement mourning him, saying they were “completely devastated.”

“The memories we shared with him will be remembered forever. At this time, our thoughts are with his family, his friends and the fans who loved him alongside us,” Styles, Horan, Malik and Tomlinson said in a joint statement posted to the band’s Instagram page. “We will miss him terribly. We love you, Liam.”

On his personal Instagram account, Tomlinson paid a separate tribute to Payne, writing that he was “deeply devastated” by the loss of Payne, whom he called “a brother.”

“Liam was someone I looked up to every day, such a positive, fun and kind soul,” Tomlinson wrote. “And for the record, in my opinion Liam was the most important part of One Direction. His experience from a young age, his perfect pitch, his stage presence, his gift for writing. The list goes on. Thank you for shaping us, Liam.”

Malik also posted a tribute to his Instagram page on Thursday, writing that he wished he could “hug” Payne “one last time.”

“When I missed home as a 17-year-old child, you were always there with a positive attitude and a reassuring smile, letting me know that you were my friend and that I was loved,” he wrote, addressing Payne directly.

Other artists also expressed their sadness and condolences, including singer Rita Ora, who collaborated with Payne on a song called “For You” in 2018. On Thursday she wrote on her page

During her concert in Japan on Wednesday night, Ora paid tribute to Payne by performing “For You” and appeared to have tears in her eyes throughout the song, video footage from the concert shows. At one point, Ora told the audience, “I can’t even sing this right now,” before sitting on stage and resting her head in her hands. A photo of Ora and Payne together in the studio flashed across the screen behind her.

James Corden, a friend of Payne, posted a tribute on Instagram on Thursday, writing: “Talking about Liam in the past tense is absolutely heartbreaking.”

“I will cherish the moments I was able to spend with him,” he added.