Judge Rules Liam Payne Died Trying To Escape Via Hotel Balcony, Charges Three People With Wrongful Death

The judge overseeing the investigation into Liam Payne’s death has ruled that the One Direction singer didn’t “lose his balance” before falling from his Buenos Aires hotel room balcony, he was instead “trying to leave his room through the balcony” while in a drugged state. Judge Laura Bruniard also levied official charges against five people previously questioned in the case. Wrongful death charges have been issued against Payne’s friend Roger Nores, along with CasaSur Palermo hotel manager Gilda Martin and reception head Esteban Grassi. The judge cited their acts of “imprudence and negligence” before Payne’s death, including dragging the singer up to his room in a “vulnerable state.” “I do not believe that [Nores, Martin, and Grassi] planned and wanted Payne’s death,” wrote the judge. “They did not plan the result but created a legally disapproved risk.” Two additional people — Ezequiel Pereyra and Braian Paiz — also face charges for allegedly selling cocaine to Payne.