The death of Liam Payne, 31, continues to send shockwaves around the world and now new information reveals the moments leading up to his fatal drop.
One of the burning questions on the minds of many fans is if the former member of One Direction was conscious when he plunged from the third storey balcony at the Buenos Aires hotel he was staying.
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Weeks before Liam Payne was found dead after dropping from a third-floor hotel room balcony in in the trendy Palermo neighborhood of Buenos Aires, he attended the concert of former One Direction bandmate Niall Horan October 3 in the Argentinian capital.
“I’m absolutely devastated about the passing of my amazing friend, Liam,” Horan shares in an Instagram post that includes a sweet throwback photo of the two from their One Direction days. “It just doesn’t feel real.”
Payne, 31, who shot to global fame with boy band One Direction, was found dead October 16th, triggering an outpouring of tributes from the band’s devotees.
While grieving fans and media collected outside the Casa Sur Hotel, investigators were gathering evidence, trying to determine the cause of Payne’s tragic death.
According to reports, coroners had found 25 injuries compatible with those caused by a fall from a height, including fatal head injuries, with internal and external bleeding.
“Our role was to head there quickly, give medical attention, and try to resuscitate him, but his injuries were incompatible with life,” Buenos Aires emergency services chief Alberto Crescenti said in a statement. “Based on what the team saw, there was apparently a cranial fracture and extremely serious injuries.”
Payne was pronounced dead at the scene.
‘Substance abuse episode’
In the internal courtyard where Payne was found, authorities recovered a whiskey bottle, lighter and cellphone, and his hotel room was “in complete disarray,” with “various items broken.”
Investigators report that packs of clonazepam, a central nervous system depressant, energy supplements and other over-the-counter drugs, were found among his belongings, leading to the belief that the star “was going through some kind of substance abuse episode.”
The Associated Press reports that “prosecutors described Payne’s case as ‘suspicious,’ citing the likelihood that the star had been drinking alcohol and taking drugs,” and authorities ordered a toxicology report.
“Everything indicates that the musician was alone when the fall occurred,” the prosecutor’s office said. Payne’s girlfriend Kate Cassidy joined him for Horan’s concert but returned days before to Florida without him.
What has not yet been confirmed is if the fatal fall was intentional or accidental, but it is known that there were no defensive injuries on Payne’s hands.
“The prosecutor’s office indicated that, based on the position in which the body was found and the injuries from the fall, it is presumed that Payne did not adopt a reflexive posture to protect himself and may have fallen in a state of semi or total unconsciousness.”
‘Party’s over’
Payne openly spoke of his mental health and substance abuse struggles and last year, the singer celebrated 100 days of sobriety.
“I feel like I’ve got more of a grip on life now and everything that was getting away from me, I just feel like I’ve got more of a handle on it,” Payne said in 2021. “I just needed to take a little bit of time out for myself actually because I kind of became somebody who I didn’t really recognize anymore. It’s good to be in this position. I definitely don’t need those things anymore. The party’s over.”
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