Hayden Panettiere death probe focusing on illegal pills from LA dealer

Richard Winton, Los Angeles Times on Sep 14, 2026

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Federal authorities probing the death of Hayden Panettiere are focusing their investigation in Los Angeles and looking into whether the actor procured nonprescription pills from an area dealer.

Drug Enforcement Administration agents and local investigators have questioned several people about the circumstances of her Aug. 16 death, focusing on her taking what was described as counterfeit oxycodone before her demise inside a Greenville, S.C., apartment, according to sources familiar with the probe.

Such counterfeit pills have repeatedly been found laced with fentanyl, which can be deadly when taken in small amounts.

The probe echoes investigations into the deaths of actor Matthew Perry and rapper Mac Miller, both of which resulted in criminal charges for their respective drug suppliers.

After TMZ published an article reporting investigators are working on a theory that Panettiere ingested a pill laced with fentanyl, the Greenville County coroner responded by saying that toxicology testing was still pending and that no cause or manner of death has been determined.

Paramedics and police found Panettiere in cardiac arrest, according to the coroner's office. Dispatch audio recordings from Broadcastify.com reference a possible overdose and CPR in progress. Narcan was reportedly administered and paramedics tried to resuscitate her. She was declared dead at 2:31 p.m.

Her longtime boyfriend Brian Hickerson, who was at the scene, gave investigators a bag of medications, according to authorities.

Panettiere lived in Los Angeles, but Hickerson is a Greenville native, according to authorities.

Sloan Ellis, a South Carolina attorney for Hickerson hired in the wake of Panettiere's death, said in a statement: "Hayden's death remains under investigation, and it is important to allow that investigation to proceed. 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."

In the cases of Perry and Miller, prosecutors ultimately secured convictions for the people who supplied Perry with ketamine and Miller with cocaine and oxycodone pills laced with fentanyl. Perry's demise in his hot tub led to his assistant, two doctors, a producer and a woman dubbed the "Ketamine Queen" pleading guilty.

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