Liam Payne was attempting to escape from his hotel when he fell to his death, it has been claimed.
Witnesses, and a since filed police report, allege the Buenos Aires hotel in which the tragic One Direction star was staying knew he was threatening to use the balcony as a means to flee but left him by himself.
According to the US website TMZ, sources familiar with the singer describe a repeated aversion he held to being confined in hotel rooms. As reported by the Mirror, this is understood to be a reaction that traces back to his years in One Direction.
His dislike of such situations reportedly led to at least one other balcony escape attempt in September, when, due to concerns over potential drug use, Liam’s security confined him to a room in a Florida rental property.
The 31-year-old is alleged to have attempted to escape through a balcony, using a garden hose to shimmy to the ground.
Liam was reportedly intoxicated and causing a disturbance in the lobby before staff at the CasaSur Hotel staff intervened on the day of his death last month. Witnesses say that the singer resisted, telling staff he did not want to stay in the room and even warned them he would use the balcony to escape if confined.
Despite this warning, hotel employees reportedly used a master key to place Liam in his room, subsequently removing a mirror outside his door, apparently out of concern he might damage it. Just minutes later, a hotel employee called 911, noting the singer was in a room with a balcony and expressing fear that he might attempt to escape. “I don’t know whether his life may be in danger. He is in a room with a balcony, and, well, we’re a little afraid,” the hotel employee stated during the call, according to the transcript.
After the hotel staff left Liam alone, he apparently attempted an escape route involving the balcony, leading to a tragic fall. His body was found with a bag strapped over his shoulder -indicating he may have been preparing to leave the room. When he was carried from the lobby, the bag was not present.
Evidence uncovered two days after his death suggests Liam may have planned his descent in stages. A second-floor hotel guest discovered a leather bag containing pills, a bottle of Jack Daniel’s, and a note labelled “for Liam” on their balcony.
Investigators believe the bag, identified as the singer’s and not the one found next to his body, was lowered to the second-floor balcony as part of his attempted escape. Police have ruled out suicide, believing the singer was likely in a state of “semi or total unconsciousness” at the time of his fall.
They are looking to determine who supplied Liam with the drugs found in his system. Rogelio “Roger” Nores, a close friend of the singer is under investigation, has similarly denied any involvement in the singer’s death. In a statement, he said he last saw the star about 40 minutes before his fall and had visited his friend’s hotel three times that day.
“I never abandoned Liam,” Nores stated. “There were over 15 people at the hotel lobby chatting and joking with him when I left. I could have never imagined something like this would happen.” Two other men have also been questioned a 21-year-old hotel worker, and a 24-year-old who worked at a restaurant Liam visited.
Don’t miss the latest news from around Scotland and beyond. Sign up to our daily newsletter.