Man accused of giving Liam Payne drugs before his death arrested in Argentina – National | Globalnews.ca

May Be Interested In:Hundreds protest in London against Beijing ‘mega embassy’


A man accused of supplying drugs to Liam Payne, a former member of the band One Direction who fell to his death in Argentina last year, has been arrested.

Braian Paiz, 24, was arrested by Argentinian police Friday and is alleged to be one of two people who supplied Payne with cocaine in the days before his death.

He is one of five people charged earlier this week in connection with Payne’s death and one of two who were ordered a form of pre-trial detention by a judge.

Of the five people charged, three are facing charges of manslaughter, including a businessman who was with Payne in Argentina and two managers of the hotel.

A news release from the prosecutor’s office says the two hotel managers saw Payne intoxicated in the hotel lobby and unable to stand, but allowed him to go up to his third-floor hotel room instead of keeping an eye on him until medical help arrived.

Story continues below advertisement

Paiz, a restaurant waiter, and another unnamed person, who prosecutors say was an employee of the hotel where Payne stayed until he died falling from the balcony of his room, are charged with supplying drugs.

Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day.

Get daily National news

Get the day’s top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day.

Paiz’ lawyer confirmed to CBS News Friday that he had been detained.

In November, prosecutors filed initial charges against three people, but they didn’t reveal their names.

Payne fell from his room’s balcony in the upscale neighbourhood of Palermo in the Argentine capital. His autopsy said he died from multiple injuries and external bleeding.

Story continues below advertisement

Prosecutors also said that Payne’s toxicological exams showed that his body had “traces of alcohol, cocaine and a prescribed antidepressant” in the moments before his death.

Payne’s autopsy showed his injuries were caused neither by self-harm nor by physical intervention of others. The document also said that he did not have the reflex of protecting himself in the fall, which suggests he might have been unconscious.

Prosecutors in Argentina also ruled out the possibility that Payne died by suicide.


&copy 2025 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.



share Share facebook pinterest whatsapp x print

Similar Content

NYT Strands today — my hints, answers and spangram for Saturday, December 21 (game #293)
NYT Strands today — my hints, answers and spangram for Sunday, January 12 (game #315)
Addressing interconnect challenges for enhanced computing performance | Science
Addressing interconnect challenges for enhanced computing performance | Science
Bonnie Raitt on being honored at Kennedy Center for 50 years of musical excellence
Bonnie Raitt on being honored at Kennedy Center for 50 years of musical excellence
A cheaper weight loss drug, more heat-related deaths and new restrictions on tobacco sales: Here's what happened in health this week
A cheaper weight loss drug, more heat-related deaths and new restrictions on tobacco sales: Here’s what happened in health this week
Project Blue Beam: A Conspiracy Theory Straight out of 'Star Trek'
Project Blue Beam: A Conspiracy Theory Straight out of ‘Star Trek’
Medicine that crosses the mind/body divide | Letters
Medicine that crosses the mind/body divide | Letters
Informed Minds: Knowledge is Power | © 2025 | Daily News