Hayden Panettiere's LA neighbors were warned to call police if they saw her ex Brian Hickerson in the past... as DEA reportedly joins investigation into star's death

Hayden Panettiere's Los Angeles neighbors were warned to call the police if they saw her on-again, off-again boyfriend Brian Hickerson on their property at one point in the past, according to TMZ.

A warning poster featuring Hickerson's face was reportedly put up temporarily outside Panettiere's West Hollywood condo following a string of complaints about his alleged behavior, according to a photo of the poster obtained by the outlet. 

The late star's neighbor, Mia Terrazas, who lived one door down from Panettiere's place, told TMZ that the Homeowners Association (HOA) posted the flyer at the end of August 2025.

The poster, which was put up outside The Hancock Condominiums, featured two photos of Hickerson, who was arrested for domestic violence multiple times throughout his relationship with the star, and warned that he has been 'trespassing in the common areas and hallways.' 

'Please do not grant him access to the building. If he is seen anywhere on this property, please call 911 immediately and report that he is trespassing on the premises,' the message on the poster read.

Terrazas added that the HOA took down the poster picturing Hickerson about a week after it went up, and that she was told he was no longer deemed a threat. 

On Tuesday, Hickerson was pictured for the first time after the beloved child actress's shock passing from a suspected overdose. Hickerson and his brother, Zach, were both at the scene when Panettiere was pronounced dead at age 36 on Sunday.

The Daily Mail has reached out to Hickerson's representative for comment. 

Terrazas claimed that the poster was put up after years of disturbances involving Hickerson. 

The neighbor also claimed that Hickerson had lived at the condo - which Panettiere bought after moving from New York - for two years. 

She said she believed Hickerson was dangerous and that she was scared of him during the time he lived with Panettiere, which reportedly continued even after he received a court issued no-contact order. 

Terrazas also told Inside Edition that she was 'terrified' of Hickerson and called 911 at least half a dozen times due to disturbances at Panettiere's condo. 

It comes amid news that The Drug Enforcement Administration has joined the investigation into Panettiere's death, according to TMZ.

Greenville Police and the coroner's office are running parallel investigations into the star's death.

The DEA's reported involvement aligns with paramedics reporting a suspected overdose over dispatch calls. First responders located Narcan, a nasal spray used to reverse the effects of opioid overdose, inside the apartment where Panettiere was found dead.

It is still unconfirmed whether narcotics contributed to Panettiere's death, as the coroner awaits toxicology results.

On Wednesday, Panettiere's estranged mother, Lesley Vogel, shared an update on the investigation into her daughter's sudden death.

Vogel, 70, told NBC News that a narcotics investigator has joined the case, and that she is unsure of where things currently stand in the probe.

It comes after Vogel blasted Hickerson earlier this week, and told NBC News: 'This person in her life that we have been trying to get rid of for quite some time was with her at her death and that was Brian Hickerson.'

'There is a lot of history in the past that Brian has enabled Hayden many times and this is why her father and I had been concerned for a long time about him.'

The Daily Mail has unearthed from court records a series of intimidating messages Hickerson allegedly sent Panettiere amidst the most abusive throes of their relationship.

It was the summer of 2020, and Hickerson, himself an aspiring actor, was facing a host of charges stemming from alleged domestic violence incidents with Panettiere.

But, in an apparent attempt to influence his girlfriend into dropping the charges, Hickerson warned Panettiere that he had a trove of damaging information ready to use against her, police said at the time.

One message allegedly read: 'Time to go to war, I guess.'

In the end, Hickerson pled no contest to two felony counts of injuring a spouse or girlfriend, with the remaining charges dropped and Hickerson serving 33 days in jail.

Panettiere later reconciled with the convicted felon, after she detailed his years of violent abuse in her memoir earlier this year.

The on-off couple were photographed together as recently as March 2026, and a heavily redacted police report from the scene of her death this week referred to Panettiere as Hickerson's 'girlfriend'.

Strangely, Hickerson had nothing but kind words to share about the actress upon the publication of her memoir in May, despite Panettiere writing of one incident in which he '[busted] up my face so badly I [didn't] leave the house for weeks.'

On Monday, TMZ reported that Panettiere had kept their reconciliation a secret for the sake of her book. The next day, her estranged mother told NBC News that she 'always knew they were together' despite reports of the pair being on and off.

Although an investigation into the circumstances surrounding Panettiere's death is still ongoing, friends have expressed their regret that those in Panettiere's inner circle did 'very little' to convince her to sever ties with Hickerson.

'Many people close to her didn't think Brian was great, but nobody got through to her enough for her to end the relationship completely,' an insider exclusively told the Daily Mail.

Panettiere was newly single and recently out of rehab when she first crossed paths with Hickerson at a Los Angeles bar in 2018, she recalled in her memoir.

The star had infamously relinquished full custody of her then three-year-old daughter Kaya to her ex-fiancé, Ukrainian boxer Wladimir Klitschko, as her struggles with postpartum depression and addiction to opioids and alcohol made motherhood an impossible struggle.

Hickerson was arrested in Los Angeles and charged with domestic violence for the first time in May 2019 and released on bail. He pleaded not guilty to one count of felony domestic violence later that month, and the case was dismissed at the end of September.

The following year, on Valentine's Day, Hickerson was arrested for domestic battery in Wyoming after a physical altercation with a woman, later identified as Panettiere.

Hickerson pleaded not guilty to the charge in April of that year. In July 2020, Panettiere obtained a restraining order against him, sharing in a public statement that she hoped others would be inspired by her to walk away from abusive partners.

Three months later, Hickerson was arrested on seven felony charges and one misdemeanor charge stemming from allegedly abusive incidents that occurred between May 2019 to January 2020, including one count of dissuading a witness from prosecuting a crime.

It was during a February 2021 preliminary hearing in Wyoming, covered by the Daily Mail, where the snapshots of the intimidating text messages and videos allegedly sent by Hickerson to Panettiere were read aloud in district court.

He ultimately pleaded no contest to two felony counts of injuring a spouse or girlfriend in 2021, while the other six counts were dropped. He was sentenced to 45 days in jail and four years' probation, plus $500 in fines and mandatory domestic violence classes.

Amid their tumultuous relationship, Panettiere made the bold decision to get sober from alcohol and drugs. Although the actress had a long history of abusing substances, revealing that she began taking 'happy pills' as early as 15 years old, her addiction worsened while she was battling postpartum depression.

In 2020, she entered a treatment center for what ultimately became an eight-month rehab stint. Panettiere later described her sobriety journey as an 'everyday battle,' though the status of her sobriety on the day of her death remains unclear.

According to a redacted incident report obtained by the Daily Mail on Tuesday, Hickerson allegedly showed police a 'bag of medication' that Panettiere had been taking at the time of her death. Narcan was also reportedly found inside the apartment.

Indeed, questions surrounding the status of Panettiere's relationship with Hickerson had been looming in recent months up until her passing. Those questions, however, were answered on Tuesday, when the redacted incident report from her death referred to Panettiere as Hickerson's 'girlfriend.'

Just last March, they were photographed traveling side-by-side at Los Angeles Airport. Two months later, Hickerson made several bombshell statements to TMZ about his past abuse, and his hopes to one day marry Panettiere.

'Man, I mean, I think it speaks for itself… I got arrested for abusing her,' Hickerson said in May.

'And I wouldn't blame her friends for being pissed off at me… I had a lot to drink and I got physical with her. I got arrested. I spent the night in jail and that's just what happens when you lay hands on women.'

According to court documents obtained by the Daily Mail, Hickerson filed a petition with the Los Angeles County Superior Court to change his felony charges to misdemeanor charges. Under his four-years' probation terms, Hickerson was ordered to attend Alcoholics Anonymous meetings 'at the minimum rate of 1 per week,' according to court records, and complete 26 anger management sessions.

Hickerson completed his probation on August 1, and asked the court to expunge the charges from his record. However, on August 13, a Los Angeles judge denied Hickerson's petition.

Three days later, Panettiere was found dead in an apartment block located in Greenville, South Carolina. She was described as 'unresponsive' and in 'cardiac arrest' after a suspected overdose, according to a recording of the 911 call obtained by the Daily Mail.

On Tuesday, police confirmed that Hickerson, along with his brother Zach Hickerson, were in the apartment with the actress. An officer at the scene said Zach was 'very emotional' amid the distressing scene, but Hickerson didn't show any upset until Panettiere was declared dead, according to the police report.