Five people have been charged by criminal authorities in Argentina in connection with the death of Liam Payne, the former One Direction member who died in October after falling from the third-floor balcony of a hotel in Buenos Aires.
Three of them have been charged with reckless homicide and face a maximum sentence of five years in prison, while the other two are charged with supplying drugs and could face four to 15 years in prison, according to Argentina’s National Office of Criminal Prosecution. .
Payne died on October 16 after falling from the third floor of the CasaSur Palermo hotel in Buenos Aires. Police were dispatched to the hotel after receiving a call about an aggressive man who may have been intoxicated. When they arrived they found Payne’s body in the hotel yard and confirmed that he was dead.
Soon after that an investigation was started. Three unnamed people were arrested on charges in November after investigators found “unlawful conduct,” prosecutors said.
The five people indicted on Friday were not identified by prosecutors in a press release published on Monday, but were identified by their first names: “RLN,” “GAM,” “ERG,” “EDP” and “BNP.”
RLN, described by police as Payne’s representative on his trip, along with hotel manager GAM and head of reception ERG, have all been charged with “involuntary manslaughter,” which prosecutors describe as when a person “inadvertently, recklessly, incompetently, or their duty or failure to observe the regulations or duties in their charge causes the death of another.” They face one to five years in prison.
According to prosecutors, the three people were each charged with different charges: RLN allegedly left Payne at the hotel, while GAM allegedly failed to stop Payne from being taken to his hotel room and ERG asked people to help him by dragging Payne to his room. .
The judge said that the RLN was responsible for this crime of reckless homicide because they played a role in ensuring the safety of Payne and the welfare of his family. Meanwhile, the hotel staff did not act maliciously, the judge said, but were negligent in helping and allowing Payne access to his hotel room.
“The three defendants contributed, although not in a planned manner, to the creation of the accident that led to Payne’s death, either by act or omission,” the judge said, according to a press release.
Two other people, described as a hotel worker (identified as EDP) and a waiter (BNP) were charged with supplying drugs. Prosecutors allege that the EDP and BNP sold Payne cocaine in the days leading up to his death.
According to BBC News, all five have been summoned to appear in court within 24 hours. The judge also ordered the next phase of the trial to begin on Friday, according to BBC News.
Payne’s death shocked the music community, as he had been a member of the popular boy band One Direction alongside Harry Styles, Zayn Malik, Niall Horan and Louis Tomlinson. The group was known for its hit songs that resonated with the youth. The band released five studio albums and had four world tours.
Representatives for Payne did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Rogelio Nores, a friend of Payne’s who was with them during their trip to Argentina, denied being involved in the incident in a statement in November.
María Luisa Paúl contributed to this report.
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