A preliminary post-mortem examination has revealed the harrowing final moments of Liam Payne before his untimely death at just 31.
The former One Direction singer met a tragic end after falling from a third-floor balcony at the CasaSur Palermo Hotel in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Liam had been in the country with his girlfriend Kate Cassidy but passed away alone on October 16.
Hotel staff, worried about Liam's well-being that afternoon, called for emergency services after the pop star was seen "acting erratically in the hotel foyer" and "had to be carried back to his room".
CCTV footage taken shortly before Liam's fatal fall shows him seemingly under the influence and causing a commotion until hotel personnel stepped in. The coroner has dismissed any notions of suicide or foul play, while distressing details from the initial autopsy report suggest the singer's mental state during the dreadful incident.
The autopsy found that Liam succumbed to "multiple traumas", leading to "internal and external bleeding" caused by the 40-foot drop. Forensic specialists have stated that "the 25 injuries noted in the autopsy are consistent with those expected from a high fall," reports the Mirror.
They noted that Liam had no "defensive type" injuries and that the wounds were "vital and produced at the same time as each other". As a result, it was determined that "the intervention of third parties would be ruled out," according to Argentinian news source La Nacion.
Additionally, on November 7, findings from the National Criminal and Correctional Prosecutor's Office indicated that traces of "alcohol, cocaine and prescription antidepressants" were found in Liam's system. Officials explained the reason suicide was dismissed, stating that "in the state he was in, he did not know what he was doing and could not understand it".
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The report suggests that Liam, a father whose death is associated with a substance-induced "psychotic episode", "did not adopt a reflexive posture to protect himself in the fall, so that, for the moment, it can be inferred that he may have fallen in a state of semi- or total unconsciousness."
It was concluded that Liam wasn't fully conscious or was "in a state of noticeable decrease or abolition of consciousness" when he fell. The investigators affirmed: "For the prosecution, this situation would also rule out the possibility of a conscious or voluntary act on the part of the victim since, in the state he was in, he did not know what he was doing and could not understand it."
A witness has finally spoken out in the contentious TMZ documentary, TMZ Presents: Liam Payne: Who's to Blame?, which some have criticised as "invasive". The programme, broadcast on Sunday, December 15 in the US, featured hotel guest Bret Watson who described being "haunted" by the harrowing event.
Bret recounted: "We happened to be looking out of the window of our hotel at the pool area to show her [the planner] the view from the hotel. We saw Liam fall... and so we immediately rushed out on the balcony to see what it was, and when we looked down, we could see that it was Liam laying on the ground."
Those under investigation for their potential roles in the incident include Roger Nores, Braian Paiz, hotel worker Ezequiel Pereyra, security staff Esteban Reynaldo Grassi, and manager Gilda Martín.
In a recent development, Judge Laura Bruinard has ordered a review of CCTV footage capturing the fall, a move made eight weeks following Liam's untimely passing. The authorities are set to scrutinise the video, which until now had not been disclosed.
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