One Direction star Liam Payne died last month after falling from the balcony of a hotel in Argentina
Three people have been charged in connection with the death of One Direction star Liam Payne in Argentina, a prosecutor’s office has said. The 31-year-old star died after he fell from a third-floor balcony at the Casa Sur Hotel in Buenos Aires on October 16.
The three were arrested and charged with “abandonment of a person followed by death, supply and facilitation of narcotics,” said a statement by the office of prosecutor Andres Esteban Madrea.
Argentinian prosecutors probing his death confirmed the arrests of three suspects who are all now under formal investigation. They said the crimes were punishable by a prison sentence of up to 15 years on conviction. They also confirmed one of the suspects included a hotel worker, the Mirror reports.
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Public prosecutors revealed only alcohol, cocaine and an anti-depressant were found in the star’s system. The long statement said: “The National Prosecutor’s Office for Criminal and Correctional Matters N°14, led by prosecutor Andrés Esteban Madrea, informs, following the lifting of the secrecy of summary proceedings, that within the framework of the investigation into the death of British musician Liam James Payne, which occurred on 16 October when he fell from a balcony in a hotel in the Buenos Aires neighbourhood of Palermo, unlawful conduct was discovered, as a result of which three people were charged with the crimes of abandonment of a person followed by death, supply and facilitation of narcotics.
“From the beginning of the investigation and within a few days, exhaustive and meticulous actions and measures were carried out to clarify the circumstances surrounding the death of the artist. In this sense, several dozen statements were received at the headquarters of the Public Prosecutor’s Office including the testimonies of hotel staff, family and friends and medical professionals.
“A detailed analysis of more than 800 hours of video footage from various security cameras in the hotel and others in the street was also carried out, with staff from the prosecutor’s office and specialised analysts from the Superintendence of Special Investigations and the Technological Support Division of the City Police, made available from the outset by the Deputy Chief of the City Police, Jorge Guillermo Azzolina.”The statement continued: “Likewise, the forensic extraction of the contents of the deceased musician’s mobile phone was carried out. From this, his calls, messages, chats on messaging applications and social networks were analysed. The registry of guests and the hotel’s bar/restaurant orders were also examined to find out who visited the musician and his drinking and eating habits.”