The body of pop star Liam Payne has been released to his family to be flown back to the UK ahead of his funeral, it has been confirmed.
Payne died three weeks ago after falling from the third-floor balcony of his room at the CasaSur Palermo Hotel in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on October 16.
An autopsy confirmed he had suffered internal and external hemorrhages and multiple traumatic injuries sustained as a result of the fall.
The BBC reports that Payne’s body was released to his family on Wednesday (6 November), after being held in Argentina while local authorities completed further toxicology and laboratory requests.
His father, Geoff Payne, has been in Buenos Aires since 18 October.
He was seen outside the CasaSur Hotel shortly after his arrival, reading tributes and kissing photos of his son near the site where he died. He also thanked fans for their support.
Born in Wolverhampton, Payne shot to fame as one of the five members of UK boyband One Direction, who first formed on the ITV reality show The X Factor in 2010.
Along with bandmates Niall Horan, Harry Styles, Zayn Malik and Liam Tomlinson, Payne achieved a number of hit singles and four No 1 albums in the US.
After the band went on an indefinite hiatus in 2016, Payne followed his former 1D members in launching a solo career, debuting with his Top 10 single “Strip That Down” featuring US rapper Quavo.
His first album, LP1, came out in 2019. He released a new single, “Teardrops”, earlier this year.
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.”
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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.”
Payne’s former One Direction bandmates have said in joint and individual statements that they are “devastated” over the singer’s death, while Cheryl, the mother of Payne’s 7-year-old son Bear, has opened up about her grief at an “indescribably painful time.” Zayn Malik announced recently that he has postponed his forthcoming US tour.
The public prosecutor’s office in Argentina continues to investigate the circumstances surrounding his death.