The Buenos Aires hotel where former One Direction star Liam Payne stayed before his death on Oct. 16 in a fall from a third-floor balcony has been raided for a second time. According to local sources who spoke with Us Weekly, City police carried out the raid at the CasaSur Hotel on Nov. 5, with police reportedly exiting the property with numerous items.
“Operations carried out by the City Police [and] requested by the prosecutor Andrés Madrea [were] within the framework of the case that is under summary secrecy,” sources told the outlet, referring to a prosecutor preserving the confidentiality of a judicial investigation.
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Details of the raid, and what police were looking for, are unclear at this time. Video footage obtained by Us courtesy of local news outlet Frandula Show showed three police officers exiting the hotel building wearing blue vests, backpacks, and shoulder bags. One of the officers reportedly carried a cardboard box and several loose items under his arm. The items were loaded into a police vehicle parked outside the hotel.
The Nov. 5 raid comes just two weeks after an initial Oct. 23 raid on the property. The object of the raid was to identify employees who were working at the Casa Sur Hotel in the days leading up to and after Payne’s passing. The One Direction star died after falling from a third-floor balcony. An autopsy revealed he died from multiple injuries as well as both internal and external bleeding. Payne, 31, was reportedly alone in his hotel room and experiencing a “breakdown” due to consumption of substances, according to initial investigations. Police reportedly found several substances in his body, including “pink cocaine,” containing methamphetamine, ketamine, and MDMA, and a preliminary autopsy stated that he “may have fallen in a state of semi or total unconsciousness.”
During the initial raid at the hotel, officers seized computer hard drives and footage from hotel cameras, among other items. An investigation into the circumstances leading to Payne’s death is ongoing.
Rising to fame as one-fifth of the boy band One Direction, which formed on The X Factor in 2010 and went on to enjoy global fame, Payne later embarked on a successful solo career. Following his passing, his former bandmates – Harry Styles, Louis Tomlinson, Niall Horan, and Zayn Malik – said in a joint statement that they are “completely devastated by the news of Liam’s passing. In time, and when everyone is able to, there will be more to say. But for now, we will take some time to grieve and process the loss of our brother, who we loved dearly.”
A funeral for Payne has not taken place at this time. Police sources confirmed to ABC News this week that the prosecutor’s office gave their permission to release Payne’s body to his father, Geoff Payne, who has been in Buenos Aires since Oct. 18.
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