Liam Payne 'offered' mystery woman $20K during alleged argument at hotel before fatal fall
BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA: Liam Payne was allegedly involved in a tense confrontation with a mystery woman just hours before his tragic death at the age of 31.
The singer, who had a well-documented history of struggles with substance abuse, plummeted from the third-floor balcony of his hotel room in Buenos Aires, Argentina on Wednesday evening, October 16.
Liam Payne's alleged heated argument over money
The circumstances leading up to Liam Payne's death remain under investigation, as witnesses recount unsettling events in the hotel lobby earlier that day.
According to American tourist Michael Fleishmann, who spoke to the Buenos Aires Herald, Payne was seen in a "very tense" exchange with an unknown woman at the CasaSur Palermo Hotel around 2 pm on Wednesday.
Fleishmann recalled the former One Direction member repeatedly offering the woman money, allegedly saying, "I’ll give you $20,000 dollars just because I can. I have $55 million and I like to help people.”
The woman, who was speaking Spanish, had her words translated for Payne by the hotel manager. However, the conversation appeared to grow increasingly uncomfortable.
Fleishmann described Payne as "upset, agitated, a little wild," pacing around and seeming "very energized."
Toni, Fleishmann’s mother, who was also present, said, “It just looked like she was extremely uncomfortable with him, and a little apprehensive,” according to New York Post.
Hotel staff's attempt to calm down Liam Payne
The Fleishmanns said that the hotel manager intervened to diffuse the situation, but Liam Payne’s agitated state created an atmosphere of anxiety in the hotel lobby.
“The manager was trying to politely intervene or calm him down,” explained Toni Fleishmann.
At one point, the Fleishmanns shared an elevator with Payne before they left the hotel and a short time later, they saw the woman he had been arguing with outside, speaking on her phone.
Liam Payne's disarrayed hotel room and tragic fall
Later that evening, October 16, Liam Payne died after he fell from the balcony of his trashed hotel room.
According to reports, another hotel guest overheard the singer say, “I used to be in a boy band…that’s why I’m so f****d up,” shortly before the fatal fall.
Payne, who has been open about his struggles with drug and alcohol abuse in the past, was found dead from multiple traumas, including massive internal and external bleeding.
When officers arrived at the scene, his hotel room was found in complete disarray, with the television smashed and drug paraphernalia scattered throughout the space.
Authorities in Argentina are still investigating the circumstances surrounding Payne's death, and whether his fall was intentional or accidental remains unclear.
Payne leaves behind one son, Bear, whom he shared with former partner Cheryl Cole.
