Hayden Panettiere: Police investigators reportedly examining devices of Brian Hickerson in relation to death

Three weeks since the world lost Hollywood actress Hayden Panettiere, authorities are reportedly continuing to look at her on-again-off-again boyfriend Brian Hickerson for answers to piece together her final moments.

The star of Heroes and Nashville died aged 36 in an apartment in South Carolina on August 16, survived by daughter Kaya, 11.

Greenville police did not find signs of foul play at the residence or additional sign of injury to Panettiere.

However, according to recent reports from Radar Online, Hickerson’s willingness to assist with the investigation began to wain when police examined his personal devices.

“They want the phone because it doesn’t forget,” a source told the outlet.

“It can help establish who he was talking to, where he was, and what was happening before Hayden was found.”

According to a police report, Hickerson was asleep in another room when Panettiere entered cardiac arrest, and that his brother Zach had discoverd her sitting in a chair in the living room.

The brothers are said to have called 911, with the report suggesting Zach had been distraught as first responders attempted to save her, but that Hickerson did not appear emotional until after she was declared dead at 2.31pm.

Hickerson also showed police the medications the actress and animal activist had been taking, though the names of the drugs have not been made public.

It could take the coroner’s office three months to complete all testing.

Hickerson and Panettiere’s relationship had been marred by assault convictions, with Hickerson serving jail time for two felony counts involving injury to a spouse or girlfriend in 2021.

Just three days before the Clash of the Titans’ star’s death, Hickerson had his bid to downgrade the felony charges to misdemeanours rejected by a Los Angeles County Superior Court.

He was arrested three separate times during their relationship.

Earlier this year, Panettiere had promoted the release of her incredibly candid memoir, This Is Me: A Reckoning.

While unable to fully escape the clutches of Hickerson, Panettiere also suffered immense personal turmoil.

In 2014, she experienced postpartum depression following the birth of her daughter, which led her to self-medicate with drugs and alcohol that became an addiction.

More recently, she dealt with the sudden death of her younger brother Jansen, 28.

Panettiere’s most recent on-screen appearance was as a brand ambassador for animal activism organisation PETA, in which she decried the inhumane captivity of marine mammals that are locked in disproportionately sized cages by theme parks.

The vision was released just two days after her death and had been filmed in the weeks prior.