A CasaSur Palermo hotel employee, Ezequiel Pereyra, and a local waiter, Braian Paiz, were indicted on a charge that they supplied narcotics to Mr. Payne in the days leading up to his death.
Mr. Pereyra and Mr. Paiz were ordered into custody, and Argentine authorities arrested Mr. Paiz on Jan. 3. Mr. Pereyra remains at large. Judge Bruniard said preventative detention was needed because the charge leveled against them carries a sentence of between four and 15 years in prison and cannot be suspended.
Lawyers for several of the defendants could not be reached for comment, but a lawyer for Mr. Paiz, Fernando Madeo, said his client was not guilty and that he would be appealing the charge. He objected to his client being detained before trial, calling it absurd. “There is no danger of flight,” he said.
The three defendants accused of negligence in Mr. Payne’s death were not ordered into custody. However, Nores, a United States national, has been directed to not leave Argentina. Lawyers for Mr. Payne’s family declined to comment on the indictment.
Mr. Payne rose to celebrity as a member of the British boy band One Direction, assembled on the talent show “The X Factor” in 2010 when he was 16. One Direction achieved international success and a devoted fandom with hits like “What Makes You Beautiful” and “Best Song Ever” before disbanding in 2016, with its five members pursuing solo music careers. Mr. Payne’s only studio album, “LP1,” was released in 2019.
His death in October inspired an outpouring of grief from fans and collaborators. His funeral, a private service in Amersham, England, was attended by Mr. Payne’s former One Direction bandmates Harry Styles, Niall Horan, Louis Tomlinson and Zayn Malik and several members of the girl group Girls Aloud, including the singer known as Cheryl, Mr. Payne’s former partner and the mother of Payne’s 7-year-old son, Bear.
