The body of One Direction singer Liam Payne was released to his family on Wednesday and will be flown back to his native U.K.
The 31-year-old popstar’s remains were given back his loved ones following further toxicology and laboratory tests in the wake of his death last month, according to the BBC.
A preliminary autopsy revealed Payne suffered multiple traumatic injuries after falling from a third-floor hotel balcony in Buenos Aires on Oct. 16.
Toxicology reports found he had drugs including benzodiazepine, crack and a concoction known as “pink cocaine” in his system when he died. The BBC stressed the quantities of those drugs wasn’t immediately clear during initial examinations.
Two hotel workers and a friend of Payne are reportedly under investigation in connection with the singer’s death, according to TMZ. Argentine authorities reportedly conducted raids Tuesday night on the homes of the two CasaSur Palermo Hotel employees.
Emergency workers received a call from the hotel’s receptionist minutes before Payne died, warning that a guest was “high on drugs” and acting erratically. First responders arrived to find the musician dead in the hotel courtyard following a 45-foot fall.
According to Argentinian reporter Paula Varela, CCTV footage showed Payne fainted prior his fatal plunge, echoing the autopsy’s findings that he “may have fallen in a state of semi or total unconsciousness” — and challenging authorities’ initial claim that he “jumped from the balcony.”
Payne had previously been open about his struggles with drugs and alcohol. He admitted to spending 100 days in rehab in 2023, but claimed to have beaten his addiction problems in the months leading up to his death.
“I definitely don’t need those things anymore,” Payne said in a YouTube video telling fans about his treatment. “The party’s over.”
Payne was in Buenos Aires with his girlfriend, Kate Cassidy, where they attended a concert by his former One Direction bandmate Niall Horan in the weeks before his death. Cassidy left Argentina and flew back to the U.S. two days before Payne died.
Payne was raised in Wolverhampton, West Midland, England. He joined One Direction in 2010. The band quickly rose to stardom before going on hiatus in 2016. Payne released his only solo album, LP1, in 2019.
