Federal investigators examining the death of actress Hayden Panettiere are focused on a series of text messages between the 36-year-old star and a person described as her longtime drug dealer, according to a report published Tuesday. The messages reportedly continued up until the week of her suspected overdose death.
Panettiere and the alleged dealer are said to have met in Los Angeles before she flew to South Carolina, where she was found dead on Aug. 16. Sources told TMZ the communications were explicit about buying drugs on the black market.
“There are a slew of messages about drugs,” one source said, adding that the texts are central to the ongoing Drug Enforcement Administration investigation.
The DEA is reportedly “zeroing in on a potential drug dealer” tied to the case. Neighbors near Panettiere’s home in West Hollywood told TMZ they had frequently seen two women, believed to be in their early 20s, and a man in his mid-30s visiting the actress dating back to 2021.
According to these accounts, Panettiere would come to the door herself, take bags handed to her, and the visitors would leave without staying. What was inside the bags has not been disclosed.
“They never stayed, they’d just leave,” one source said.
One bag delivered by the man about a week before Panettiere’s death reportedly had the name “Brian” written on it. It is not known whether this was intended for her on-and-off boyfriend, Brian Hickerson, who has already spoken with DEA officials as part of the investigation. What he told law enforcement has not been made public.
Panettiere, known for roles in “Heroes” and “Nashville,” was found dead in an Airbnb after reportedly taking a single pill believed to be oxycodone laced with fentanyl. Coroners have not released an official cause of death. Narcan, a medication used to reverse opioid overdoses, was reportedly found at the property.
A national fentanyl crisis
Panettiere’s case adds to a growing list of deaths tied to fentanyl-laced pills circulating across the country. The DEA seized more than 47 million such pills and nearly 10,000 pounds of fentanyl powder in 2025 alone.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has said synthetic opioids like fentanyl are now involved in nearly 70% of overdose deaths nationwide, warning that even small doses can be fatal.
In December 2025, President Trump signed an executive order classifying fentanyl as a “weapon of mass destruction,” describing the largely China-sourced synthetic opioid as “closer to a chemical weapon than a narcotic.” “No bomb does what this is doing,” he said at the time.
Panettiere is not the only high-profile figure whose death has been linked to the drug. Robert De Niro’s grandson, Leandro De Niro Rodriguez, died of an overdose in July 2023 after taking fentanyl-laced opioid pills.
