Brian Hickerson, the ex-boyfriend of the late actress Hayden Panettiere, was arrested after an altercation at a Greenville, South Carolina bar on Saturday night. Hickerson, 37, was reportedly drinking for hours with his brother Zach at the Wild Wing Cafe before becoming involved in a heated exchange.
According to footage obtained by TMZ, Hickerson became agitated and flung a bar stool backward during the incident. He was then seen being carried out of the establishment by another patron as a bartender shouted, "Let him go!"
Once outside, Hickerson and his brother were reportedly brawling with others when police arrived. A source told TMZ that Hickerson was handcuffed and began yelling at officers, stating, "GPD leaked it when my girlfriend died," referencing Panettiere's death.
Hickerson was not arrested at the scene and was released. However, his brother Zach was arrested and charged with disorderly conduct due to being heavily intoxicated and yelling profanities.
Both Brian and Zach Hickerson were present at the condo where Panettiere was pronounced dead at the age of 36. According to a Greenville Police Department incident report, Zach told police that Brian was asleep in a separate room when he discovered the actress unresponsive. Zach stated that Brian administered Narcan, a medication used to reverse opioid overdoses, and that they performed CPR while on the phone with 911 dispatchers.
Hickerson has reportedly met with the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) as part of their investigation into Panettiere's suspected overdose death. Investigators are reportedly focused on identifying a suspected dealer, believing the actress may have been sold drugs that contributed to her death.
Panettiere's toxicology reports and official cause of death have not yet been released. The actress and Hickerson had a tumultuous on-again, off-again relationship that began in 2018. Panettiere detailed their volatile relationship in her memoir, published in May, just three months before her death.
Hickerson had been arrested and charged multiple times for domestic violence involving Panettiere. In 2021, he pleaded no contest to two felony counts of injuring a spouse or girlfriend, leading to jail time, probation, domestic violence classes, restitution, and a five-year protective order.
Zach Panettiere previously told TMZ that "The truth will come out as the authorities complete and release additional details from the investigation" and that those who loved Hayden deserve the truth. He described his sister as "one of the most precious individuals on this earth" and urged for the family to be allowed to mourn without "additional noise, chaos, and misinformation."