Liam Payne, former One Direction star, dead at 31 in Buenos Aires

Liam Payne, former One Direction star, dead at 31 in Buenos Aires
  • The One Direction singer Liam Payne died at the age of 31, multiple outlets reported.

  • Authorities said the British star fell from a hotel balcony in Argentina.

  • Payne was part of One Direction from 2010 until the group split in 2016.

The former One Direction singer Liam Payne has died after falling from a third-floor hotel balcony in Argentina, according to multiple reports. He was 31.

According to the Argentine outlet La Nación, police officers were called to the CasaSur Palermo hotel in the Palermo neighborhood of Buenos Aires on Wednesday after reports that a man was behaving aggressively in the building.

The Associated Press quoted an official from the Buenos Aires Security Ministry as saying Payne "had jumped from the balcony of his room."

The official, Pablo Policicchio, the ministry's communications director, told the AP in a statement that the local police received an emergency call soon after 5 p.m. local time about an "aggressive man who could be under the influence of drugs or alcohol," prompting the police to rush to the hotel.

Alberto Crescenti, the director of SAME, Argentina's state emergency medical system, said authorities found Payne in the hotel's inner courtyard. He added that Payne appeared to have fallen about 42 to 45 feet, resulting in injuries "incompatible with life," according to the Argentine media outlet TN.

Representatives for Payne did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.

Payne joined One Direction alongside Harry Styles, Zayn Malik, Louis Tomlinson, and Niall Horan during the 2010 British talent show "The X Factor." The group came third place in the final.

In November 2011, One Direction released their first album, "Up All Night," which debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard charts. They released another four albums before going on hiatus in 2015 when Malik left the group.

Following the group's indefinite hiatus in 2016, each member has gone solo.

In 2019, Payne released his album, "LP1." He released the song "Teardrops" in March.

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