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Liam Payne had \u201cmultiple substances\u201d in his system when he died after falling from a third-floor hotel balcony in Buenos Aires, Argentina, early toxicology results have revealed.<\/p>\n
A preliminary toxicology report found that the former One Direction singer, who died on October 16 at age 31, had drugs in his system at the time of his death, sources told ABC News on Monday (October 21). One of the substances reportedly included \u201cpink cocaine\u201d \u2013 a recreational drug that typically includes a combination of methamphetamine, ketamine, MDMA, per the National Institutes of Health.<\/p>\n
According to the New York Times, the final toxicology results are pending, with no confirmed date for their release. A spokesman for the Buenos Aires police also said the preliminary toxicology report was handed over to the local prosecutor\u2019s office, which is investigating the death as a matter of protocol.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, an initial autopsy report indicated that Payne had suffered \u201cinternal and external\u201d hemorrhages and multiple traumatic injuries. Officials said Payne\u2019s plunge from the third-floor balcony at the CasaSur Palermo Hotel was what caused his fatal injuries.<\/p>\n
The singer was pronounced dead on October 16, after emergency services responded to a hotel manager\u2019s call about an \u201caggressive man who could be under the influence of drugs or alcohol.\u201d<\/p>\n
Initial autopsy report reveals Liam Payne suffered internal and external bleeding after falling from third-floor hotel balcony (Getty Images for Nickelodeon)The 911 call was made at 5:01pm local time, shortly before Payne\u2019s death around 10 minutes later. The hotel employee told the operator that emergency services were needed \u201curgently,\u201d noting that the hotel room had a balcony.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe need you to send us someone urgently because, well, we don\u2019t know if the guest\u2019s life is at risk,\u201d they said. \u201cHe is in a room that has a balcony. And well, we\u2019re a bit afraid that he does something that could put his life at risk.\u201d<\/p>\n
Alberto Crescenti, head of the local emergency services, told Buenos Aires Times that \u201cthere was no possibility\u201d for first responders to save Payne\u2019s life as he had \u201cvery serious injuries.\u201d<\/p>\n
Buenos Aires police later found Payne\u2019s hotel room \u201cin complete disarray,\u201d with packs of clonazepam, a central nervous system depressant, as well as energy supplements and other over-the-counter drugs strewn about and \u201cvarious items broken.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Sign upThey added that a whiskey bottle, lighter, and cell phone were retrieved from the internal hotel courtyard where Payne\u2019s body was found.<\/p>\n
Payne rose to fame as a member of One Direction, one of the most popular boy bands in history. The group was formed on reality competition series The X Factor in 2010, where Payne, Harry Styles, Niall Horan, Zayn Malik, and Louis Tomlinson each auditioned as solo acts before joining the five-piece group.<\/p>\n
Liam Payne was a member of the boy band One Direction, which announced its prolonged hiatus in 2016 (Getty Images)Released in 2011, their debut single \u201cWhat Makes You Beautiful\u201d topped the charts in the UK and hit No 4 on the US Billboard Hot 100. The song also won the 2012 Brit Award for British Single of the Year and featured on their debut album,\u00a0Up All Night.<\/p>\n
\u201cAt the start we couldn\u2019t get past our own egos,\u201d he told\u00a0The Guardian\u00a0in a 2019 interview. \u201cEverybody had their own little thing \u2013 it was like having four older brothers.\u201d He claimed to be \u201ca bit more mature\u201d than his bandmates, which he said was due to his focus and ambition for a career in show business.<\/p>\n
Payne referred to the time he spent in\u00a0One Direction\u00a0as \u201clike uni\u201d, but would later open up about his experiences of burnout and claustrophobia: \u201cCabin fever,\u201d he told The Telegraph. \u201cIt sent me a bit AWOL at one point, if I\u2019m honest. I can remember when there were 10,000 people outside our hotel. We couldn\u2019t go anywhere. It was just gig to hotel, gig to hotel. And you couldn\u2019t sleep, because they\u2019d still be outside.\u201d<\/p>\n
One Direction announced their hiatus in 2016 following Malik\u2019s departure from the band as the five members pursued solo careers with varying degrees of success.<\/p>\n
Payne had attended Horan\u2019s concert in Buenos Aires just weeks before his death. While the living members of One Direction have yet to publicly address Payne\u2019s passing, both fans and friends have shared social media tributes to the singer.<\/p>\n
In a statement issued by Payne\u2019s spokeswoman, his family said: \u201cWe are heartbroken. Liam will forever live in our hearts and we\u2019ll remember him for his kind, funny and brave soul. We are supporting each other the best we can as a family and ask for privacy and space at this awful time.\u201d<\/p>\n
Follow live updates and tributes following the death of Liam Payne here.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Sign up to Roisin O\u2019Connor\u2019s free weekly newsletter Now Hear This for the inside track on all things musicGet our Now Hear This email for freeGet our Now Hear This email for free I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our\u00a0privacy policy Liam Payne had \u201cmultiple substances\u201d […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3740,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[173],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3739","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\n