TRAGIC END Liam Payne dead: One Direction star dies aged 31 after falling from 3rd floor balcony of Buenos Aires hotel

FORMER One Direction star Liam Payne has died in Argentina after reportedly falling from his hotel balcony.

The 31-year-old singer was in Buenos Aires for pal Niall Horan’s tour when he tragically plunged from the third floor on Wednesday afternoon, TMZ reports.

Former One Direction star Liam Payne has diedCredit: Getty

Liam had spoken to fans earlier on Snapchat WednesdayCredit: Unpixs

Crowds have gathered behind a police cordon outside the Buenos Aires hotelCredit: AP

Liam was a member of boy band One Direction between 2010 and 2016Credit: Alamy

Liam arriving for a movie premier in 2010Credit: PA

Singer Cheryl Cole and then-beau Liam

Liam’s last post was put up only minutes before his deathCredit: snapchat

Fans cry as they wait outside the hotelCredit: AFP

Cops are at the hotel as they investigate the deathCredit: AP
A source confirmed to The Sun that Liam has died.

The singer-songwriter was staying at Hotel CasaSur in the neighbourhood of Palermo.

Crowds of heartbroken fans are now gathering behind a cordon outside the accommodation to pay tribute to the guitarist.

Pablo Policicchio, the spokesperson for the security ministry of Buenos Aires, said police were called to the hotel by a worker about an “aggressive man who could be under the influence of drugs or alcohol”.

Witnesses at the hotel said Liam smashed his laptop and had to be carried back to his room in the erratic incident earlier in the day, TMZ reports.

Cops found Liam dead in the hotel’s inner courtyard at around 5pm local time (9pm UK time) when they arrived.

A red tent was put up over the body as cops began the investigation into the tragic death before the body was taken to the morgue.

The spokesperson for the local ambulance service said Liam’s death had been confirmed on the spot after he had fallen and suffered severe injuries.

Alberto Crescenti told local media: “The alarm was raised at 5.04pm local time saying a person was lying in an internal patio at Casa Sur.

“At 5.11pm an ambulance arrived and the man was certified dead.

Cheryl charmed by Liam Payne in first X Factor audition from 2008
“There was no possibility of resuscitating him.”

Tributes have begun to pour in for Liam with celebrities and fans alike sharing their heartbreak.

Liam’s final post on social media was put up on his Snapchat only minutes before his death and showed him and girlfriend Kate Cassidy looking into a mirror.

He had posted earlier in the day talking about riding horses, playing polo, and looking forward to returning home to see his dog.

“It’s a lovely day here in Argentina.”

Kate had also shared a post of Liam just before his death riding a horse with her in the countryside.

The star had arrived in Argentina on September 30 with his girlfriend and was seen at Niall’s show dancing and meeting fans on October 2.

Liam joined One Direction aged just 16 years old after auditioning on X-Factor and finishing third with the group.

He was with the group as it released its first Album Up All Night in 2011 and went stratospheric and captured hearts around the globe.

He was one of the main songwriters of the band between 2010 and 2016 until the group broke up.

Liam with One Direction in 2011Credit: PA

Liam in 2021Credit: Rex
He carried on with his own solo music career and released one solo album in 2019 – LP1.

The Sun revealed last week that Liam had parted ways with his management and had shelved plans for a second solo album.

And earlier this week Liam’s ex Maya Henry called in the lawyers after accusing Liam of repeatedly messaging her, her friends, and her mum.

The Wolverhampton-born singer was born August 29, 1993, and had early health battles and was bullied at secondary school.

He made his debut as a singer when he auditioned for X Factor in 2008.

An unearthed clip shows baby-faced Liam telling the cameras: “When I’m at school, in general, I think about singing all the time.

“I should really be concentrating on my school work but I just think about singing too much.”

Fans embrace outside the hotelCredit: Reuters

Liam singing as part of One Direction in 2010Credit: Rex
After being eliminated as a solo artist he auditioned again in 2010 and was put into a group with four others to form One Direction.

Simon Cowell united Zayn Malik, Louis Tomlinson, Niall Horan and Harry Styles to form one of the biggest music acts ever.

Liam dated singer Cheryl Cole with the pair having a child named Bear in 2017.

They split in 2018 before he was linked to supermodel Naomi Campbell in 2019.

He had an on-off, three-year relationship with ex-fiancée Henry which was said to have ended for good in May, 2022.

The singer had been open about his battles with drugs.

In 2021, he blamed a “pills and booze phase” for bloating his face to “ten times the size”, while also revealing he used to guzzle the contents of his mini bar when band chiefs checked the lads into hotels to keep fans at bay.

In 2019, Liam revealed he suffered suicidal thoughts as he struggled with his fame he revealed on Ant Middleton And Liam Payne: Straight Talking.

He said: “For some certain circumstances I’m quite lucky to be here still.

“There are times when that level of loneliness and people getting into you every day, it’s like, ‘When will this end?’ That’s almost nearly killed me a couple of times.”

He survived by his son Bear, 7, his parents, Geoff and Karen Payne, and his two older sisters, Ruth and Nicola.

Police will now carry out an autopsy on the body.

Inside Liam Payne and Cheryl’s romance

By Joanne Kavanagh

IT was a romance that caused a media storm.

One Direction hunk Liam Payne was in a relationship ship X Factor judge Cheryl.

The pair – who have a ten-year age gap – got together while Cheryl was going through her divorce to second husband Jean-Bernard Fernandez-Versini at the beginning of 2016.

Despite their age difference they looked completely infatuated with each other when the couple made their red carpet debut at Cannes in May 2016.

Liam even paid a sweet tribute to his girlfriend by getting a tattoo of her eye on his arm.

In 2017, Liam and Cheryl welcomed their baby.

Cheryl posted a picture on Instagram of Liam cradling their 7lb 9oz baby.

She captioned the sweet snap with: “On Wednesday Liam and I became parents to an incredibly beautiful, healthy baby boy looking like a dream.”

One pal told The Sun: “Cheryl gave birth to a baby boy on Wednesday, and both are doing well.

“Liam didn’t leave Cheryl’s side throughout the birth, and like her, he is besotted with their new son and can’t wait to take him home.

“This is the perfect Mother’s Day for Cheryl.”

The Sun revealed in May 2017, that the couple named their son Bear.

They decided on the unusual name after spending a week getting to know him.

Bear adopted his One Direction star dad’s surname, so he is called Bear Payne.

A source revealed: “Cheryl and Liam wanted to get to know [their son] before they decided on the name.

“They didn’t have the name Bear before the birth.

“But they’d been thinking of a name since meeting him and they just felt it suited him.”

In February 2018, The Sun broke the story that Liam’s constant travelling to promote his solo career had placed a huge strain on the relationship, and they were ready to split.

That same month, Cheryl declared that “none of it matters” as she shrugged off questions about her crumbling romance with Liam during a BBC Breakfast interview.

They then put on a united front together at the Brit Awards, where they smiled on the red carpet and Cheryl joked about the couple’s ‘safe word’.

However, by July 2018, Cheryl and Liam made the decision to split.

A pal told The Sun: “Cheryl and Liam worked really hard on their relationship – they had troubles earlier this year and were able to get through them.

“But they’re in different stages of their lives and, after a lot of careful thought, came to a decision that it’s best for everyone if they do go their separate ways.”

Liam and Cheryl then released a statement confirming their break-up.

They posted a message on social media that read: “We are sad to announce that we are going our separate ways. It’s been a tough decision for us to make.

“We still have so much love for each other as a family. Bear is our world and we ask that you respect his privacy as we navigate our way through this together.”