Liam Payne funeral: One Direction bandmates attend singer's service in Britain
Liam Payne was memorialized at a funeral on Wednesday, Nov. 20, with his family and One Direction bandmates in attendance.
The 31-year-old singer and One Direction alum died Oct. 16 in Buenos Aires, Argentina, after falling from a third-floor hotel balcony.
Payne's service was held at St. Mary's Church in Amersham, England, about 30 northwest of London, and not far from his hometown. The funeral was private, but some fans gathered outside, and an area was set up outside for media.
A horse-drawn carriage carrying Payne's casket arrived in front of the churchas his parents, Karen and Geoff Payne, were seen crying. Four pallbearers brought the casket inside the church, as attendees looked on.
One Direction stars Harry Styles, Zayn Malik, Niall Horan and Louis Tomlinson were seen arriving at the funeral, as well as Payne's girlfriend, Kate Cassidy, and friends James Corden, Damian Hurley and "Girls Aloud" singer Kimberley Walsh.
Payne earned global fame as part of the since-disbanded pop group. Payne is survived by his 7-year-old child, Bear, whom he shared with British singer Cheryl Cole.
Liam Payne funeral: Casket arrives at service
Liam Payne death investigation prompted 3 arrests
Earlier this month, three people were charged in Argentina after an investigation into Payne's death. The three suspects were criminally charged "with the crimes of abandonment of a person after death" and the "supply and facilitation of narcotics."
Prosecutor Andrés Esteban Madrea, head of the National Criminal and Correctional Prosecutor's Office in Argentina, said in the Nov. 7 statement that one of the suspects is a person who allegedly accompanied Payne daily during his time in the city of Buenos Aires. The prosecutor said the second person is a hotel employee who is accused of supplying the singer with drugs during his stay while the third person is alleged to have supplied drugs to Payne days before his death.
Investigation into Liam Payne's death prompts 3 arrests, Argentinian authorities say
According to the prosecutor's office, Payne's stay at the Casa Sur hotel began Oct. 13. Investigators believe at least four narcotics deliveries were supplied to the singer in the days before his death.
The internal and external injuries Payne sustained were "compatible" with a fall from a third-floor balcony, according to Madrea, and third-party involvement was ruled out. Testing found Payne had traces of alcohol, cocaine and a prescription antidepressant in his system in the 72 hours before his death.
Investigators currently believe he was in a state of partial or full unconsciousness at the time of his fall, and they ruled out the possibility that the fall was voluntary.
Contributing: KiMi Robinson