BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) — The father of former One Direction star Liam Payne arrived in Buenos Aires on Friday to arrange for the return of his son's body to England two days after the famous boy band singer fell to his death from a hotel balcony.
After landing at the Buenos Aires International Airport in the early morning hours, Geoff Payne was photographed emerging in a blue suit from a downtown hotel accompanied by British consular officials and stepping into a sleek black van.
Argentine authorities said Payne was headed to the local prosecutor's office, which is investigating the case as a matter of protocol, to organize the repatriation of his son's remains. Local media reported that he later visited the morgue.
It's the first time that any of Payne's family members have been seen publicly since the star's sudden death, which set off an outpouring of grief and emotion from major pop industry figures and diehard One Direction fans across the world. The shock hit particularly hard at home, with his family saying in a statement that they “are heartbroken.”
“Liam will forever live in our hearts and we’ll remember him for his kind, funny and brave soul,” the family said in a statement shortly after his death. “We are supporting each other the best we can as a family and ask for privacy and space at this awful time.”
In various media interviews over the years, Payne had often expressed gratitude and affection for his auto mechanic father and nurse mother, describing them as hard-working and supportive. Both parents made cameos in “One Direction: This Is Us,” the 2013 concert documentary about the popular boy band.
“When I see him on stage I absolutely burst with pride, but we do miss him so much,” Payne's mother, Karen, said at one point in the film.
The 31-year-old singer's final hours at the hotel in Palermo, a trendy neighborhood of Buenos Aires, remain murky as Argentine prosecutors say he appeared to have excessively consumed drugs and alcohol. The prosecution cited investigators who found Payne's hotel room a mess with what appeared to be narcotics and alcohol strewn about broken objects and furniture.
It remains unclear whether Payne intentionally jumped or accidentally fell from the third floor. The autopsy performed a few hours after his death showed he died from his three-story plunge, which caused “multiple trauma” and “internal and external bleeding” in the skull, chest and abdomen and limbs. The results of toxicology reports are pending.
Investigators said that there were no signs of anyone else being involved in his death, citing a lack of defensive wounds on Payne's body that also indicates he did not try to protect himself from the fall. The prosecutor's report said Payne could have fallen into a state of semi-consciousness or unconsciousness.
Isabel Debre, The Associated Press
