The Argentina police are investigating Liam Payne’s death after responding to a 911 call prior to his fatal fall.
Us Weekly can confirm that the Buenos Aires City Police from Station 14B were dispatched during the afternoon on Wednesday, October 16, to CasaSur Palermo Hotel, where Payne was staying. The officers were acting on a call reporting an “aggressive man who may have been under the influence of drugs or alcohol,” according to the official police report.
“At 5:04 p.m., through 911 and the integrated public security system, we were alerted about a person in the internal courtyard of the CasaSur hotel,” the SAME (Emergency Medical Assistance System) director Alberto Crescenti said in a TV interview via La Nacion.
He noted that seven minutes later, a nearby SAME team arrived on scene and “confirmed the man’s death.” At the time, Payne’s identity was unknown, but it was clear he could not be saved.
Liam Payne. GC Images/GC Images
“Unfortunately, he had injuries incompatible with life due to the fall, so we had to confirm the death. There was no possibility of resuscitation,” Crescenti continued, noting Payne dropped approximately 13 or 14 meters before hitting the ground.
Us Weekly confirmed on Wednesday that Payne died after falling from the third floor of his Argentina hotel. He was 31.
Payne’s death is being handled by Criminal and Correctional Prosecutor’s Office No. 16 under Andrés Esteban Madrea and secretary María Florencia Lavaggi, according to Teleshow. The local police and prosecutor are also investigating the case.
The late singer was best known for his time in One Direction. The boy band was formed in 2010 when Payne, Niall Horan, Zayn Malik, Harry Styles and Louis Tomlinson were discovered on Britain’s X Factor.
One Direction released four albums before Malik, 31, announced his departure from the group in March 2015. The remaining singers dropped one more record that same year before parting ways in early 2016.
Payne went on to release 14 singles — including “Teardrops” in March — two EPs and one solo record, 2019’s LP1, before his death.
He teased in May 2023 that he was working on a second studio album. That same year, he planned to tour in South America but had to postpone the fall dates due to a serious kidney infection.
“It’s with a heavy heart I have to tell you that we have no other choice but to postpone my upcoming tour of South America,” Payne wrote via Instagram in August 2023. “Over the past week I’ve been in hospital with a serious kidney infection, it’s something I wouldn’t wish on anyone, and doctor’s orders are that I now need to rest and recover.”
Payne is survived by his son, Bear, whom he welcomed in March 2017 with then-girlfriend Cheryl Cole. Payne and Cole, 41, broke up in July 2018 after two years of dating.
Following a broken engagement from Maya Henry, which ended in 2022, Payne began dating Kate Cassidy. The pair briefly split in 2023 but rekindled their romance earlier this year.
