Hayden Panettiere‘s on-again, off-again boyfriend Brian Hickerson has released his first statement in wake of the 36-year-old actress’ death earlier this week.
“Hayden’s death remains under investigation and it is important to allow that investigation to proceed,”
an attorney for Hickerson said in a statement provided to Rolling Stone. “As has been publicly reported, police confirmed there were no signs of foul play. Out of respect for Hayden’s loved ones and the ongoing investigation, there will be no further comment at this time.”
Panettiere died Sunday after emergency responders received a 911 call about an unresponsive female at an address in Greenville, South Carolina. On a dispatch audio obtained by People, officials discussed an “overdose” and “cardiac arrest” around the time of Panettiere’s death.
There were “no signs of trauma” that would have resulted in her death, according to an initial autopsy report. The Greenville City Police Department opened up an investigation this week and the police force is being assisted by the Drug Enforcement Administration, The New York Times reported.
Panettiere had been involved in a tumultuous relationship with Hickerson, whom she met in 2018 and in 2020 sought a restraining order against him. In her recently published memoir, This Is Me: A Reckoning, Panettiere detailed instances where Hickerson was physically violent with her, beating her to the point she couldn’t leave her home for weeks.
Hickerson — along with his brother Zach — was allegedly inside the Greenville residence when Panettiere died, according to a police report obtained by NBC News.
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