A judge has detailed Liam Payne‘s final moments, concluding that the singer fell to his death after trying to escape from his hotel balcony in a drugged state.
According to the judge overseeing the 31-year-old’s death investigation, Judge Laura Bruniard, Payne was in a “state of vulnerability” and clearly intoxicated at the Casa Sur Hotel in Palermo, Argentina on October 16, 2024.
At around 5pm, Payne was seen fainting in the hotel lobby. According to court documents, he was “unable to stand” due to the “consumption of various substances”. Payne was then “dragged up” to his hotel room by staff members and left alone.
Judge Bruniard concluded that Payne should have been put in a safe place with supervision. Instead, he was put at risk by being left alone in a potentially dangerous place.
“Payne’s consciousness was altered and a balcony was in the room. The proper thing to do was to leave him in a safe place, and with company, until a doctor arrived,” Bruniard wrote in her ruling, per The Mirror.
Judge Bruniard shared that Payne’s death was most likely caused by the singer attempting to escape his hotel room.
“I maintain that [Payne] tried to leave from the balcony of the place where he was left because the forensic experts noted that he did not lose his balance. This is how the fall occurred,” she said.
“[Payne] tried to leave via the balcony, in the state detailed. He fell into the void and died.”
After reviewing security camera footage and reviewing the evidence of the case, Judge Bruniard concluded that Payne was a victim of “imprudence and negligence” by those around him with his death being “foreseeable” in the circumstances.
In Argentina, the prosecutor’s office must present evidence to a judge who will then decide whether to proceed to trial. Judge Bruniard ruled that the case would proceed to court.
As it stands, Payne’s friend Rogelio ‘Roger’ Nores, Casa Sur Palermo hotel manager Gilda Martin and the head of reception Esteban Grassi all face charges of manslaughter.
“I do not believe that [Nores, Martin, and Grassi] planned and wanted Payne’s death. They did not plan the result but created a legally disapproved risk,” Judge Bruniard said.
However, Judge Bruniard claimed that Nores had taken a “position of guarantor” with Payne’s family and had become their main point of contact.
“He should have consulted with a doctor given the commitment made to the family of the deceased,” she wrote.
“He should have done this without trusting how the hotel employees could have dealt [with Payne].”
Waiter Braian Paiz and hotel employee Ezequiel Pereyra have been accused of supplying the former One Direction member with drugs. Both have been refused bail and are currently serving preventative jail time.
“In this case, it was proven that both [Paiz and Pereyra] supplied cocaine to Liam Payne in exchange for money,” the judge said.
Paiz’s attorney Fernando Madeo Facente said the jail time was “completely arbitrary and illegitimate”.
“This resolution does nothing more than demonstrate what we maintain as a ‘witch hunt’ ought to be carried out in this case,” Facente said, per Rolling Stone.
“[They’re] looking for guilty parties and accusing innocent people of committing crimes.”
Liam Payne died from injuries sustained from falling off the balcony on October 16, 2024. Toxicology reports found multiple drugs in his system at the time of his death.
He was laid to rest in a private funeral on November 21, 2024. It was attended by his girlfriend Kate Cassidy, his family and his former One Direction bandmates Harry Styles, Niall Horan, Louis Tomlinson and Zayn Malik.
He is survived by his son, Bear, seven, whom he shared with his ex Cheryl Tweedy.
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