Liam Payne's death: five people prosecuted in Argentina, including the manager of the hotel where the singer died

Liam Payne died on October 16th when he fell to his death from the balcony of his hotel in Argentina. He had consumed significant quantities of synthetic drugs,

Five people are being prosecuted in Argentina for their alleged responsibility in the death of Liam Payne, a former member of the boy band One Direction who died after falling from his hotel balcony in October, the country's justice system announced on Monday, December 30.

“Three of the accused were charged without pretrial detention for involuntary manslaughter, and the other two for the crime of supplying narcotics with pretrial detention”, the Argentine prosecutor's office said in a statement, identifying the five people only by their initials.

Liam Payne, 31, was found dead on October 16 following “multiple traumas” and a “internal and external bleeding” after falling from the balcony of his hotel room in Buenos Aires, where he had been staying for a few days. According to the investigation, he had consumed alcohol, cocaine and antidepressants before his death.

Hotel Manager Among Those Charged

“RLN, the victim's representative who accompanied Payne on the trip to Buenos Aires to renew his U.S. visa; the hotel manager, GAM; and the hotel's front desk manager, ERG, are the three charged as involuntary manslaughterers […] punishable by one to five years in prison,”, the prosecutor said.

A hotel employee identified by the initials EDP and a waiter Mr. Payne met in Buenos Aires, whose initials are BNP, are being indicted for “providing narcotics” […], which carries a sentence of four to fifteen years in prison. Both were placed in pretrial detention.

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In early November, the Argentine prosecutor's office filed charges of drug dealing and abandoning a vulnerable person against three people, without disclosing their names. Monday's decision means that the five people mentioned will be sent to court.

The judge in charge of the case, Laura Bruniard, noted “actions and omissions” on the part of Liam Payne's representative, before and at the time of the musician's fall.

The accused “failed in his duties of care, assistance and aid” and abandoned Liam Payne“to his fate, knowing that he was incapable of fending for himself, knowing that he suffered from multiple prior addictions – to alcohol and cocaine – and having full knowledge of the state of intoxication, vulnerability and defenselessness in which he found himself”, according to the prosecutor's statement.

The judge considered that it was also appropriate to prosecute the hotel manager and the head of reception, who arranged for Payne to be taken to his room even though they could see that he “was unsteady due to substance use”.

Tributes to the singer

After the announcement of the musician's death, tributes were poured in held in several cities around the world, including London on October 20. Thousands of people sang along to the songs of the former boy band, which had a meteoric rise from 2010 to 2016.

In a 2023 video posted on his YouTube account, Liam Payne had revealed that he had been admitted to a detox center for his alcoholism. One Direction, which was one of the most lucrative boy bands in the world, released its fifth and final studio album, “Made in the A.M.” in 2016. The same year, the group announced a hiatus, which was never officially separated.

The members of the boy band then began solo careers with varying degrees of success. Liam Payne released his debut album, “LP1”, in 2019. Last year he announced he was working on a second album and released a new single in March 2024.