Liam Payne, a member of One Direction, ingested cocaine, alcohol, and a prescribed antidepressant prior to his fatal fall from a hotel balcony in Buenos Aires last month, according to Argentine prosecutors on Thursday.
The prosecutor's office reported that three individuals have been charged with providing him with drugs, with one of them also facing charges for abandoning a person in a vulnerable condition.
Toxicological tests, which have been shared with his family, indicated that Payne had traces of polydrug use, including alcohol, cocaine, and a prescription antidepressant, in his system during the 72 hours leading up to his death.
Payne was discovered deceased on October 16 after falling from the balcony of his third-floor room at the CasaSur Hotel in the Argentine capital. An autopsy revealed that he died from "multiple traumas" and "internal and external hemorrhaging" resulting from the fall.
One Direction, one of the most successful live acts of the 2010s, entered an indefinite hiatus in 2016. While Payne experienced some solo success, his career had recently faced challenges. His passing at the age of 31 elicited widespread grief and condolences from family, former bandmates, fans, and others.
Regarding the drug supply charges, prosecutors noted that one of the accused had been with Payne daily during his stay in Buenos Aires and is charged with both supplying narcotics and abandoning a person who later died. The second suspect, a hotel employee, is accused of providing cocaine to Payne on two occasions during his stay at the CasaSur. A third individual is also charged with supplying the drug on October 14, just two days before his death.
The prosecution has ruled out self-harm and the involvement of third parties as factors in Payne's death, stating that the injuries he sustained were consistent with those from a fall.
“Payne was either not fully conscious or was in a state of markedly diminished or absent consciousness at the time of the fall,” the report said.
He was discovered deceased after hotel personnel contacted emergency services to report “a guest who is under the influence of drugs and alcohol, and damaging his room.”
Body transported home
The toxicology report was released the day after the singer’s father, Geoff Payne, arranged for his body to be flown back to Britain from Buenos Aires to London.
Payne’s passing has sparked a discussion regarding the music industry’s responsibility for the mental well-being of young stars who achieve fame early in their careers.
The Wolverhampton-born singer had openly discussed his battles with substance abuse and the challenges associated with teenage fame.
He initially auditioned for the widely popular television talent show “The X Factor” at the age of 14 but did not succeed.
Two years later, he found success on the show, where he was paired with Niall Horan, Harry Styles, Louis Tomlinson, and Zayn Malik to create One Direction.
Over the subsequent six years, the group attained international stardom, amassing a devoted fan base and selling over 70 million copies of their five albums. They completed four world tours and received nearly 200 awards.
Payne is survived by his seven-year-old son, Bear, with Girls Aloud member Cheryl Tweedy.