OAN Staff James Meyers
8:52 AM – Saturday, March 8, 2025
Oscar winning actor Gene Hackman was living with his dead wife’s body for an entire week before his body gave into complications from heart problems and advanced Alzheimer’s disease, officials stated on Friday.
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His longtime wife, Betsy Arakawa, died of Hantavirus, which is a rare flu-like disease connected to rodents, which likely took place on February 11th, New Mexico authorities said. Meanwhile, the actor was believed to have died seven days later.
The latest details put an end to a mystery case that has surrounded the death of the star studded couple, who were both found on February 26th inside their Santa Fe mansion.
Arakawa, 65, last left the estate on February 11th, which was also the last time she sent out any communications, according to Santa Fe County Sheriff Adan Mendoza.
According to New Mexico Chief Medical Examiner Heather Jarrell, she most likely died of the virus on February 11th.
Jarrell also said that Hackman most likely died roughly a week after his wife from hypertensive and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease and from Alzheimer’s. He tested negative for Hantavirus.
“He was in a very poor state of health,” Jarrell said. “He was in an advanced state of Alzheimer’s disease and it was quite possible he did not know that she was deceased.”
The timeline of events that took place before the bodies were discovered in the mystery case has been reported as:
- Feb. 11: Arakawa last left her and Hackman’s home. Also the last time she sent out any communications, according to authorities.
- Feb. 17: Last detected activity on Hackman’s pacemaker, leading officials to believe that was likely when he died
- Feb. 26: The bodies of Hackman, 95, and Arakawa, 65, were discovered by maintenance and security workers at their Santa Fe, New Mexico mansion.
Additionally, the medical examiner noted that Hackman was not dehydrated at the time of his death, but the Oscar winner did not have any food in his stomach.
Jarrell stated that Hackman’s wife most likely picked up Hantavirus, which can only pass from animals to humans, after she was “exposed to rodent excrement.”
The wife would have begun feeling sick three to six days before then “succumbing pretty quickly” to the virus, the medical examiner said.
Jarrell said there were signs of “rodent entry” around the property but they “assessed the risk of exposure in the primary residence as low — similar to other well-maintained houses in New Mexico.”
Hantavirus, which can start about a week to eight weeks after exposure, leads to flu-like symptoms such as fever and nausea and quickly escalates to trouble breathing. Only 865 cases of the disease have been reported in the US between 1993 and 2022, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
The two bodies were discovered by maintenance and security workers at their Santa Fe mansion on February 26th.
Hackman was discovered in the mud room of the home and his wife was found in a bathroom with an open prescription bottle and pills on the counter.
One of their three dogs, Zinna, was also found dead in a crate in the bathroom closet near Arakawa.
However, their two other dogs, Bear and Nikita were found roaming outside of the property.
The two bodies were decomposing and mummifying because of the dry air and high altitude of the area.
Authorities also said the married couple did not have a caretaker in the home to help out.
Hackman’s pacemaker registered activity on February 17th, which was nine days before the pair was found.
A further look at his pacemaker data showed, “abnormal rhythm of atrial fibrillation” a day later, “which was the last record of heart activity,” Jarrell said.
Meanwhile, Mendoza said they are confident about the timeline they put together, but are still awaiting information from their cell phones and from the investigation of the dog’s remains.
Hackman was last publicly seen going into a medical appointment in March of 2024. He appeared very weak and frail at the time.
The Hoosier’s star had three children in total, all of whom he shared with Maltese.
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