Liam Payne toxicology report 'could take weeks' as investigators say 'body must stay in Argentina'

A toxicology report on Liam Payne's body has reportedly not yet been completed. Authorities in Argentina have said that results into tests currently being undertaken are needed before the singer's body can be released to his grieving family.

The One Direction star was in Buenos Aires when he fell from the balcony of a hotel in the Palermo area of the capital. The 31-year-old died of his injuries at the CasaSur Palermo hotel on October 16.

A representative of the public prosecutor's office is said to have met with Payne's dad Geoff Payne, who is in Argentina. Andrés Esteban Madrea told Mr Payne that toxicology and histopathological exams have not yet been completed.

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Results are needed before the body can be released to his family, Sky News reports. An initial toxicology report had found the presence of cocaine in Payne's body at the time of his death.

According to an official, the preliminary report was handed to local prosecutors. But they said it does not offer an accurate reading of how much of the class A drug was in his blood when he died.

The final toxicology results are not expected to be made public for several weeks. Investigators say they found what appeared to be drugs and alcohol near broken objects and furniture in Payne's hotel room.

It led the public prosecution to believe the Wolverhampton-born singer suffered a substance abuse-induced breakdown around the time of his fall. They said Payne could have been in a state of 'semi or total unconsciousness' when he fell from his hotel balcony.

Payne suffered 'extremely serious injuries' after landing in the courtyard of the hotel, police said. The hotel's desk manager told a 911 operator there was 'a guest drunk with drugs and alcohol' who was 'breaking everything in the room' just moments before the fall.