Former One Direction star Liam Payne has died aged 31 in Argentina after falling from the third floor of a hotel in Buenos Aires, police said.
In a statement, police said they found Payne’s body after paramedics responded to a 911 call in the Palermo area.
Payne gained international fame as part of the much-loved team formed on TV show The X Factor in 2010, along with Harry Styles, Louis Tomlinson, Niall Horan and Zayn Malik.
Earlier this month, Payne attended a concert in Argentina by her former One Direction bandmate Niall Horan.
According to the Buenos Aires police, the officers at the scene were responding to reports of an “aggressive man who may have been under the influence of drugs and alcohol”.
When they arrived at the hotel, officers were told that a loud noise was heard in the inner courtyard. Soon after, they found a body there. A police investigation has been launched.
Emergency director Alberto Crescenti told reporters that Payne was seriously injured and an autopsy would be performed.
Mr Crescenti declined to answer questions about the circumstances of Payne’s fall from the balcony.
The UK Foreign Office has confirmed that it has been in contact with authorities in Argentina “about journalists over the death of a British man”. No other details were provided.
Payne was seen writing on Snapchat hours before the incident, saying: “It’s a beautiful day here in Argentina.”
When the news of his death was heard, fans began to gather outside the Buenos Aires hotel where he died, prompting the police to close the door.
“I was in my living room and my sister told me that Liam had died,” a young fan named Violeta Antier told Reuters. “We couldn’t believe it. We came straight here to make sure it was true.”
Ms Antier said she saw Payne at a Niall Horan concert two weeks ago.
Recommendations have also been pouring in online.
“Sending love and condolences to his family [and] dear,” wrote socialite Paris Hilton on X, previously on Twitter. “RIP my friend.”
On Instagram, presenter Dermot O’Leary said he remembers Payne well.
“I remember him when he was 14 years old when he came to the X factor audition and blew us away singing Sinatra,” she wrote alongside a photo of the two.
“He was always happy, he had time for everyone, the police, he was grateful and he was always humble.”
Payne, who was born in Wolverhampton in the UK, first tried to find fame when she auditioned for ITV’s talent show The X Factor in 2008 – but was told by judge Simon Cowell to “come back in two years”.
He did, impressing the judges in 2010, and was joined by four other hopefuls on the boot camp stage and One Direction was born.
The group had four UK number one albums and four number one singles and top charts worldwide, before announcing that they would be going on hiatus in 2015.
In 2017, Payne’s debut single Strip That Down, which peaked at number three in the Official UK Chart, and his collaboration with Rita Ora on the song For You – from the Fifty Shades Freed soundtrack – also reached the top 10.
He began a relationship with Girls Aloud star Cheryl Tweedy in 2016 and they had a son, Bear, the following year. The couple separated in 2018.
Earlier this week, Maya Henry, one of his ex-partners, told the media through his lawyers that he has issued a cease and desist order against the singer. He posted on social media accusing her of repeatedly contacting him. Liam did not respond to the allegations.
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