The body of 31-year-old former One Direction singer Liam Payne was flown back to the UK from Argentina by his father, with the funeral set to take place this week.
According to Mirror , the singer will be brought back to the UK “no later than November 4 (local time)”. Last week, Argentine media reported that his body was transferred from the morgue to the largest British cemetery in the capital Buenos Aires to begin the process of preserving the body, preparing to be sent home.
Liam Payne’s funeral will take place in the UK this week, at St Paul’s Cathedral, Wolverhampton – the city where he grew up.
Singer Liam Payne. Photo: AFP
Liam’s father, Geoff Payne, has been in the Argentine capital since October 18, trying to get his son’s body back home for burial, according to British embassy officials in Buenos Aires. He was initially told the process could take four to five days, but the investigation has taken longer than expected due to the complexities surrounding the pop star’s death.
The Sun reported that the investigation into Liam’s death lasted more than two weeks. Prosecutors said the singer was either semi-conscious or unconscious due to drug use when he fell from the third-floor balcony of the hotel. According to toxicology results released on October 21, the former One Direction member had taken drugs and a variety of drugs, including: cocaine, crack, benzodiazepine sedatives and “pink cocaine” – a recreational drug often mixed with methamphetamine, ketamine, MDMA and many others, causing hallucinations.
The autopsy also found that Liam Payne died from serious injuries sustained in the fall. Based on the manner of his fall and the injuries, investigators believe that Liam did not defend himself. They confirmed that there were no signs of third-party intervention.
Police are investigating whether hotel staff supplied drugs to Liam Payne. Authorities have also questioned two female staff who visited Liam’s hotel room in the hours before his death.
Liam Payne collapsed and died at a hotel in Buenos Aires at around 5pm on October 16. The singer had come to Argentina with his girlfriend, Kate Cassidy, in late September to attend a concert by his friend Niall Horan of One Direction on October 2. On October 14, after a two-week vacation in Argentina, his girlfriend returned to the US while Liam remained alone. Kate Cassidy said she was shocked and heartbroken by Liam’s tragic death.
Liam Payne rose to fame as a member of One Direction, a pop group formed by Simon Cowell after the seventh season of the UK X Factor in 2010. Liam, along with Harry Styles, Niall Horan, Louis Tomlinson and Zayn Malik, achieved immediate success with the release of their debut single What Makes You Beautiful in 2011. The group has had four number-one singles in the UK and five number-two singles, making them one of the best-selling boy bands of all time.
After One Direction disbanded in 2015, Liam Payne developed a solo career, loved with hits such as Strip That Down , For You… He released the single Teardrops earlier this year and is working on his second album. Liam has a 7-year-old son, Bear Grey Payne, with his ex-girlfriend – singer Cheryl Cole.
