Liam Payne had “multiple substances” in his system when he died after falling from a third-floor hotel balcony in Buenos Aires, Argentina, early toxicology results have revealed.
A preliminary toxicology report found that the former One Direction singer, who died on October 16 at age 31, had drugs in his system at the time of his death, sources told ABC News on Monday (October 21). One of the substances reportedly included “pink cocaine” – a recreational drug that typically includes a combination of methamphetamine, ketamine, MDMA, per the National Institutes of Health.
According to the New York Times, the final toxicology results are pending, with no confirmed date for their release. A spokesman for the Buenos Aires police also said the preliminary toxicology report was handed over to the local prosecutor’s office, which is investigating the death as a matter of protocol.
Meanwhile, an initial autopsy report indicated that Payne had suffered “internal and external” hemorrhages and multiple traumatic injuries. Officials said Payne’s plunge from the third-floor balcony at the CasaSur Palermo Hotel was what caused his fatal injuries.
The singer was pronounced dead on October 16, after emergency services responded to a hotel manager’s call about an “aggressive man who could be under the influence of drugs or alcohol.”
The 911 call was made at 5:01pm local time, shortly before Payne’s death around 10 minutes later. The hotel employee told the operator that emergency services were needed “urgently,” noting that the hotel room had a balcony.
“We need you to send us someone urgently because, well, we don’t know if the guest’s life is at risk,” they said. “He is in a room that has a balcony. And well, we’re a bit afraid that he does something that could put his life at risk.”
Alberto Crescenti, head of the local emergency services, told Buenos Aires Times that “there was no possibility” for first responders to save Payne’s life as he had “very serious injuries.”
Buenos Aires police later found Payne’s hotel room “in complete disarray,” with packs of clonazepam, a central nervous system depressant, as well as energy supplements and other over-the-counter drugs strewn about and “various items broken.”
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They added that a whiskey bottle, lighter, and cell phone were retrieved from the internal hotel courtyard where Payne’s body was found.
Payne rose to fame as a member of One Direction, one of the most popular boy bands in history. The group was formed on reality competition series The X Factor in 2010, where Payne, Harry Styles, Niall Horan, Zayn Malik, and Louis Tomlinson each auditioned as solo acts before joining the five-piece group.
Released in 2011, their debut single “What Makes You Beautiful” topped the charts in the UK and hit No 4 on the US Billboard Hot 100. The song also won the 2012 Brit Award for British Single of the Year and featured on their debut album, Up All Night.
“At the start we couldn’t get past our own egos,” he told The Guardian in a 2019 interview. “Everybody had their own little thing – it was like having four older brothers.” He claimed to be “a bit more mature” than his bandmates, which he said was due to his focus and ambition for a career in show business.
Payne referred to the time he spent in One Direction as “like uni”, but would later open up about his experiences of burnout and claustrophobia: “Cabin fever,” he told The Telegraph. “It sent me a bit AWOL at one point, if I’m honest. I can remember when there were 10,000 people outside our hotel. We couldn’t go anywhere. It was just gig to hotel, gig to hotel. And you couldn’t sleep, because they’d still be outside.”
One Direction announced their hiatus in 2016 following Malik’s departure from the band as the five members pursued solo careers with varying degrees of success.
Payne had attended Horan’s concert in Buenos Aires just weeks before his death. While the living members of One Direction have yet to publicly address Payne’s passing, both fans and friends have shared social media tributes to the singer.
In a statement issued by Payne’s spokeswoman, his family said: “We are heartbroken. Liam will forever live in our hearts and we’ll remember him for his kind, funny and brave soul. We are supporting each other the best we can as a family and ask for privacy and space at this awful time.”
Follow live updates and tributes following the death of Liam Payne here.