Police have reportedly arrested two people in connection with the death of former One Direction member Liam Payne and have raided the home of a third.
Payne died on October 16 at the age of 31 after falling from a third-floor balcony at the CasaSur Palermo Hotel in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The Argentinian prosecutor’s office has since shared that his cause of death was due to multiple traumas and internal and external bleeding.
Later, preliminary toxicology tests revealed that Payne had pink cocaine and several other substances in his system at the time of his fatal balcony fall.
On October 25, a raid was conducted of the hotel where Payne died. According to local news site La Nacion, police were searching for further evidence, particularly in the form of documentation, film records and video that could help piece together the final hours of the late singer’s life. The Guardian has additionally reported that officers had seized computer hard drives and the hotel’s security camera footage.
Interviews were also conducted with hotel staff as well as several members of the authorities, including technical and medical professionals who have worked on the case. Geoff Payne, Liam’s father, also arrived in Buenos Aires to aid in investigations.
Authorities have been investigating his death ever since and now, ABC World News have reported that two arrests have been made. Both of those arrested are hotel workers, according to Rolling Stone.
An Argentine businessman who spent time with Payne while he was in the country has also had his home raided. La Nación reports that Payne’s businessman friend, who had falsely presented himself as Payne’s manager, was accused by police of abandonment of a person, which carries a possible prison sentence of three to six years.
Numerous outlets have reported that the businessman failed to inform Payne’s family that he was having issues with drugs. Per La Nación, investigators tried calling the friend on the day of Payne’s death, but he never appeared. He later spoke to police through an attorney the following day.
Authorities have raided nine locations, eight related to the three people with criminal accusations. The ninth was the room a woman who was supposedly with Payne hours before his death.
Investigators are also said to be looking into a Dove soapbox that was found in Payne’s hotel room.
The repatriation of Payne’s body is believed to have taken longer than expected due to the investigations, but has reportedly taken place today (November 7).
In other news, plans to release Payne’s first posthumous single were pulled only two days after they were announced.
Grammy award-winning producer Sam Pounds, who worked with Payne shortly before his death, shared that he would be releasing a new song by the late singer on November 1. The song, titled ‘Do No Wrong’, was set to be released in three forms: the original, a live mix and an a cappella version.
Though some fans were excited to hear the track, the announcement was met with backlash from many who felt it was too soon after Payne’s death to share it.
