Five people are being questioned by police in connection to the death of singer Liam Payne on Tuesday (16 October).

The 31-year-old passed away after falling from a third-floor balcony of the Casa Sur Hotel in Buenos Aires and sustaining injuries ‘not compatible’ with life.

A statement by Alberto Crescenti, the head of the state emergency medical system, reads: “The alarm was raised at 5.04pm local time saying a person was lying in an internal patio at Casa Sur.

“At 5.11pm, an ambulance arrived and the man was certified dead.

“Afterwards, we found out he had been a famous singer. Unfortunately the injuries he had suffered as a result of the fall proved to be fatal. There was no possibility of resuscitating him.”

Payne had recently attended his former bandmate Niall Horan’s concert in the Argentinian city.

Prior to his death, authorities had been called to the hotel after being told there was a man who was acting aggressive and ‘could be under the influence of drugs or alcohol.’

Police are questioning five people in connection with One Direction singer Liam Payne’s tragic death in an Argentinian hotel 

Staff at the hotel had expressed their concerns about his access to his room’s balcony, fearing he could easily fall over the 4ft glass railing.

In one of two phone calls, a panicked worker told emergency services: “We have a guest who’s off his head on drugs and is destroying everything in his room. We need someone to come.”

After the line went dead, he called back and said: “I don’t know if the guest’s life is in danger. The room has a balcony and we are afraid he might do something.”

Seconds later the employee added: “Just send an ambulance, only an ambulance.”

Now, police are pursuing two criminal charges and questioning five people in connection to the tragedy, according to Argentinian news outlet Clarin.

This includes three employees at the hotel and two women who had been in Liam’s room earlier in the day.

Liam had been in Argentina with his girlfriend to attend a concert of his former bandmate Niall Horan

According to the report, the late singer’s hotel room was ‘in total disarray, with various items broken.’

The television had been smashed and there were traces of aluminium foil, candle wax, and cans, alongside ‘a bottle of whisky, a lighter and a cell phone’ from which they took fingerprints.

“Several blister packs of medications such as clonazepam, energizers and over-the-counter medications were seen,” they said.

An autopsy report has revealed that Payne died as a result of ‘multiple trauma’ and ‘internal and external haemorrhage’ due to the fall.

Liam Payne’s family has shared a heartbreaking tribute to the late singer, following the news of his death in Argentina.

Last night (16 October) authorities in Argentina confirmed that Payne, 31, had died after falling from a balcony at his hotel in the capital of Buenos Aires where he had been staying.

Early reports stated that police had been called to the CasaSur Hotel following reports of an ‘aggressive man who could be under the influence of drugs or alcohol’.

Alberto Crescenti, the head of the state emergency medical system, would later confirm that Payne had fallen around 40 metres and suffered ‘severe injuries which were incompatible with life’.

Payne’s family have no issued a heartbreaking public tribute in the wake of his death, which reads: “We are heartbroken. Liam will forever live in our hearts and we’ll 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.”

The singer rose to international fame after taking part in ITV singing series X Factor, being paired into the group One Direction alongside Harry Styles, Niall Horan, Zayn Malik and Louis Tomlinson.

One Direction would go on to achieve immense global success after placing third in the series, going on to sell over 70 million records worldwide thanks to hits such as ‘That’s What Makes You Beautiful’, ‘Night Changes’ and ‘Best Song Ever’.

Following the split of One Direction, Payne would go on to embark on a solo career and collaborated with artists such as Quavo, Zedd and Rita Ora on his music.

Liam’s parents Karen and Geoff Payne 

Outside of the music industry, Payne would go on to embark on a romantic relationship with Cheryl Tweedy (formally Cole) in 2016, the pair would go on to welcome a son together the following year before splitting up in 2018.

Meanwhile Payne’s family touching family tradition has since resurfaced online in the wake of his passing, in which the family would keep a cardboard cut out of him in the living room during the early days of One Direction.

“We miss him,” his mum Karen said in the band’s film This Is Us back in 2023.

“He left home my little boy and became the boy in a magazine. If I have this I can still see him every day. When I see him on stage I absolutely burst with pride, but we do miss him so much.”

Zayn Malik has paid an emotional tribute to Liam Payne following his death aged just 31.

The statement was posted to Instagram alongside a picture of the pair, who – alongside Harry Styles, Louis Tomlinson and Niall Horan – were former members of One Direction.

Along with the caption ‘Love You Bro’, Malik’s statement said: “Liam, I have found myself talking out loud to you, hoping you can hear me, I can’t help but think selfishly that there were so many more conversations for us to have in our lives.

“I never got to thank you for supporting me through some of the most difficult times in my life.

“When I was missing home as a 17 year old kid you would always be there with a positive outlook and reassuring smile and let me know you were my friend and that I was loved.

“Even though you were younger than me you were always more sensible than me, you were headstrong, opinionated, and gave no fucks about telling people when they were wrong.

“Even though we butted heads because of this a few times, I always secretly respected you for it.

“When it came to music Liam, you were the most qualified in every sense. I knew nothing in comparison, I was a novice child with no experience and you were already a professional.

“I was always happy to know, no matter what happened on stage we could always rely on you to know which way to steer the ship next.

“I lost a brother when you left us and can’t explain to you what I’d give to just give you a hug one last time and say goodbye to you properly and tell you that I loved and respected you dearly. I will cherish all the memories I have with you in my heart forever.

“There is no words that justify or explain how I feel right now other than beyond devastated.

“I hope that wherever you are right now you are good and are at peace and you know how loved you are.

“Love you bro.”

Zayn Malik and Liam Payne were former members of One Direction 

Payne fell from the third floor of a hotel in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and suffered ‘severe injuries which were incompatible with life’.

An initial autopsy has already been performed on Payne’s body, confirming the singer had died from ‘internal and external haemorrhaging’ sustained from the fall, per reports from Marca and The Mirror.

However, it’s understood that further toxicology tests are ongoing.

Alberto Crescenti, the head of the state emergency medical system, confirmed that the singer died after falling 40 metres from his balcony.

He said: “The alarm was raised at 5.04pm local time saying a person was lying in an internal patio at Casa Sur.

“At 5.11pm an ambulance arrived and the man was certified dead.

“Afterwards we found out he had been a famous singer. Unfortunately the injuries he had suffered as a result of the fall proved to be fatal. There was no possibility of resuscitating him.

TMZ has defended their decision to publish images of Liam Payne’s dead body following public backlash.

The news outlet reported the late singer’s death on Wednesday (16 October), after Payne fell from a third floor balcony in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

His body was found in the internal hotel courtyard, and TMZ shared photos of Payne’s arm and waist covered in identifying tattoos on their website.

Liam Payne has died at the age of 31 

The now-deleted images were taken ‘on a wooden deck at the hotel with tables and chairs nearby’.

The pictures were met with outrange online, with celebrity presenter Rylan Clark tweeting: “TMZ f**king shame on you. Disgrace.”

Singer Alessia Cara also wrote: “You’re gross @TMZ.”

Another wrote: “TMZ posting part of a photo of Liam Payne’s dead body in an article announcing his death is beyond deplorable.

“I can’t tell if I’m losing my mind lately or if society has always been this overtly morally decrepit.”

Amid the backlash, TMZ executive producer Michael Babcock has defended the decision to use the images.

Appearing on Fox 5 New York on Thursday (17 October), he said: “There’s a balance, and that’s obviously a conversation that newsrooms across the world have – you want to be sensitive to the family and to the friends and also while working a news story.

“When the information was coming in, police had not yet confirmed that it was Liam, so what was done on the TMZ website, there was an image – did not show the full image, didn’t show his face – but that showed his arm and his abdomen, where he has some very recognisable tattoos, so that’s sort of used as a way to confirm, or to match up the tattoos at a point where police had not yet confirmed his identity.

“And then, once they did, obviously, that photo was removed.

Fans in Argentina mourning the singer’s death 

“I mean, it’s just a terribly horrific and sad story. It’s something obviously that shouldn’t have happened, and this guy had so much life left to live and you feel horrible for everybody.”

According to a transcript shared by the Buenos Aires police department, two calls were made by hotel staff, asking for assistance for a guest who was ‘intoxicated by drugs and alcohol’.

Police said Payne’s hotel room had been ‘in complete disarray’ with ‘various items broken’.

A post-mortem examination report showed that the singer died of multiple traumas and ‘internal and external haemorrhage’.