Pictures of the hotel room in which Liam Payne spent his final hours have reportedly surfaced, with a smashed TV and white powder on tables.
The former One Direction star was pronounced dead aged 31 after falling from a hotel in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
He was staying at the Hotel Casa Sur when he fell from the balcony, with tributes from fellow X Factor stars and fans rolling in.
The hotel staff had called the police, claiming a guest had become out of control and was ‘trashing the entire room’.
Photos purporting to have been taken inside the room have since been revealed showing the extent of the ‘trashing’.
One image shows a cracked TV screen on a shelf, with a half-drunk glass of what appears to be wine next to it.
Also shown was a table, covered in foil, scorch marks, and white powder which police have said are being tested for narcotics.
Hours after his death, Argentinian outlets posted the images with publications including La Nacion and Clarin confirming the photos.
Another image showed more foil and a broken Dove soap bar in the bathroom and police have asked fans not to speculate on the content of the images.
Local police are reportedly planning to investigate who supplied the History hitmaker with the substances, assuming tests are positive.
Payne has been candid previously about his struggles with mental health and substance usage, taking a step back from the spotlight a few years ago.
‘There is some stuff that I have definitely never, never spoken about,’ he said on the Diary of a CEO podcast in 2021. ‘It was really, really, really severe. It was a problem.
‘And it was only until I saw myself after that I was like, “Right, I need to fix myself”.’
Aged just 16, Payne found stratospheric fame when he joined One Direction in 2010 as he, Harry Styles, Niall Horan, Zayn Malik and Louis Tomlinson formed a boy band on The X Factor after auditioning solo.
The One Direction craze was huge, often compared to Beatlesmania, with the boy band becoming icons overnight.
Payne suffered from agoraphobia, brought on by the intense public interest in his life and constant observation any time he left his home.
‘I was very confused about fame when it all happened,’ Payne told the BBC in 2019, ‘and learning to be a person outside of your job was difficult. But now I feel like I get it. I’m a lucky boy.’
In the same interview, Payne recalled how shortly after he released Strip That Down – his first solo endeavour after One Direction in 2017 – he gave up drinking.
‘There were a couple of very dark years of me going through extreme peril with different mental health things,’ he said. ‘I just didn’t know where I was going to end up.’
Got a story?
If you’ve got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the Metro.co.uk entertainment team by emailing us [email protected], calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we’d love to hear from you.
MORE : Fame was the best and worst thing to happen to Liam Payne
MORE : Liam Payne’s death isn’t Maya Henry’s fault – stop blaming her
MORE : Sky News branded ‘scum’ over comments on Liam Payne’s young son Bear
