Former One Direction singer Liam Payne‘s shocking death in Buenos Aires, where he fell from a third-story hotel window, came days after Payne’s ex-fiancée, model Maya Henry, issued a cease and desist order against Payne, alleging stalking and harassment of Henry’s friends and family, and that the “Teardrops” singer tried to turn Henry’s fans against her. Shortly before Payne’s death, Henry took to TikTok and appeared on The Internet is Dead podcast to relay intimate details about Payne’s behaviors, and how he has treated her since the couple split.
According to Buenos Aires police, on the night Payne died, hotel staff reported a man, presumably Payne, behaving aggressively in his hotel room and asked for help. Authorities determined Payne, 31, died instantly upon impact. Payne had recently attended his former One Direction bandmate Niall Horan’s concert in the city. Drug paraphernalia and a damaged television were reportedly found inside Payne’s hotel room, and authorities later said the singer jumped. About a year before he died, Payne shared his struggles with addiction issues in a post on his official YouTube channel.
Maya Henry’s TikTok post
Henry and Payne’s relationship began in 2016. They got engaged in 2019 before calling it off two years later. The couple briefly reunited before ending things a second and final time in 2022, according to The Independent. In an Oct. 6 TikTok post, Henry, 23, alleged Payne, who she doesn’t name but says is associated with One Direction, not only “blows up” her phone but also her friend’s and family’s phones, and each time it’s from a different number.
Henry said, “I never know where it’s going to come from . . . Also [he] will email me. Not only me, but he’ll blow up my mom’s phone. Is that normal behavior to you?” Moreover, Henry said Payne turned his loyal One Direction following against her and that Payne’s fans often harassed her online. “He says that he ‘preys’ on One Direction fans because they will always be loyal to him and they won’t tell on him,'” Henry claimed.
Payne told Henry he might die
Henry also appeared on The Internet is Dead podcast shortly after her TikTok post and after she began legal proceedings against her ex, and alleged Payne repeatedly told her, “‘Oh, I’m not well,'” in what she called a “manipulation tactic.” Henry added, “He would always play with death and be like, ‘Well, I’m going to die. I’m not doing well.’”
Payne would also sometimes contact Henry’s mother, telling her, “I’m not going to be around much longer,” Payne said. She added, “There was one time I tried to get him help, and then he was not taking it. It’s just always the same cycle … I don’t play with death. If you say this, I’m going to try and help you no matter what you’ve done. I think he took advantage of my family’s kindness,” she said.
Maya Henry’s book is based on journal entries
Meanwhile, in May, Henry released Looking Forward, a novel she says is based on true events and inspired by journal entries from her relationship with Payne. In her The Internet is Dead appearance, Henry said a friend warned her not to release the book because of how it might affect Payne’s mental health. Before he died, an unnamed source told People that Payne was “extremely overwhelmed by all of the legal issues” involving his ex.
Payne is survived by his son, Bear, born in 2017, from a previous relationship with Girls Aloud singer Cheryl. Payne was reportedly in Argentina with his current girlfriend, social media influencer Kate Cassidy, whom he started dating two years ago. According to a Cassidy TikTok post, she left Payne in Argentina just two days before Payne died. “I was so ready to leave,” Cassidy said in her voiceover of her decision to leave Argentina and return to Florida. “Honestly, loved South America but I hate staying in one place for too long. And we were supposed to be there for, like, five days, turned into two weeks.” She did not mention Payne in her post.
