Three individuals have been indicted in relation to the tragic death of Liam Payne, the renowned British pop artist and ex-member of One Direction, who passed away after a fall from the balcony of his hotel room in Buenos Aires last month.
Argentine prosecutors have officially confirmed the charges, with prosecutor Andrés Madrea accusing the three unnamed suspects of the offenses of “abandonment of a person followed by death” and “supplying and facilitating the use of narcotics.” Madrea also petitioned for their arrest to Judge Laura Bruniard, who subsequently ruled that the three suspects cannot leave the country.
Payne, aged 31, met his demise after falling from the third-floor balcony of his hotel located in the affluent Palermo neighborhood of the Argentine capital. His autopsy revealed that he died from multiple injuries and external bleeding. Additionally, Payne’s toxicological examinations indicated the presence of alcohol, cocaine, and a prescribed antidepressant in his system at the time of his death.
Investigators initially stated that Payne was alone when he fell. However, the prosecutors' office disclosed that one of the charged individuals was frequently with the singer during his stay in Buenos Aires. The second suspect is a hotel employee who allegedly provided Payne with cocaine during his stay from October 13 to 16. The third suspect is a drug dealer.
The prosecutor's office emphasized that there was no evidence of any third-party involvement in Payne’s death and ruled out the possibility of self-harm. The statement explained that Payne did not adopt a protective posture during the fall, suggesting he might have been in a state of semi or total unconsciousness. “Liam Payne was not fully conscious or was experiencing a state of noticeable decrease or loss of consciousness at the time of the fall,” the statement read. This condition would “rule out the possibility of a conscious or voluntary act” as “in the state he was in, he did not know what he was doing nor could he understand it.”
Local authorities collected various pieces of evidence, including Payne’s cell phone records, forensic materials, and testimonies. They are still working to unlock the singer’s personal computer, which is damaged, along with other seized devices.
The charges against the suspects in Payne’s case bear a resemblance to those in the US cases involving the deaths of Friends star Matthew Perry and rapper Mac Miller. In both instances, individuals were charged with supplying controlled substances that contributed to the celebrities’ fatal overdoses.
Source link: https://www.euronews.com
