Argentina charges 5 over death of singer Liam Payne

BUENOS AIRES: Five people have been indicted in Argentina over the death of British singer Liam Payne, who fell from a Buenos Aires hotel balcony in October after consuming alcohol and drugs, prosecutors said yesterday.

Three of the five were charged with manslaughter and the other two with supplying the former One Direction pop star with illegal drugs, prosecutors said, identifying the suspects only by their initials.

The latter two have been ordered to be taken into custody but the others have been allowed to remain free, the prosecutors said.

Payne died on Oct 16 after falling from the balcony of his third-floor room at the Casa Sur Hotel in the Argentine capital.

His death at age 31 prompted a global outpouring of grief from family, former bandmates, fans and others, with thousands gathering in cities around the world to offer their condolences.

The unnamed people charged with manslaughter are a representative of the singer who was travelling with him, a woman managing the hotel where Payne died, and the head of its reception desk, the prosecutors said.

Those charged with supplying Payne with drugs are a hotel employee and a waiter that Payne met elsewhere in the city, they added.

Prosecutors said last month that Payne had consumed cocaine, alcohol and a prescription antidepressant before falling to his death.

The pop star had spoken publicly about struggling with substance abuse and coping with fame from an early age.

In November, Argentine officials had unveiled initial charges against three people in the death of Payne.

Yesterday’s decision means that five will now go on trial.

One of the highest-grossing live acts in the world in the 2010s, One Direction went on indefinite hiatus in 2016.

Payne went on to enjoy a degree of solo success but his career had languished recently.

Payne’s death prompted a debate about whether the music industry has a duty of care for the mental health of stars who find fame at a young age.

The singer from Wolverhampton in central England first auditioned for the hugely popular television talent show “The X Factor” at the age of 14 but was unsuccessful.

Two years later he hit gold on the programme, which teamed him up with Niall Horan, Harry Styles, Louis Tomlinson and Zayn Malik to form One Direction.

Over the next six years, the group enjoyed global fame and legions of screaming fans, selling more than 70 million copies of their five albums.

They went on four world tours and won nearly 200 awards.

Payne is survived by a seven-year-old boy, Bear, with Girls Aloud star Cheryl Tweedy.