[Bleed]

American actor Gene Hackman, 95, and his wife Betsy Arakawa have been found dead in their home in the US state of New Mexico.

Santa Fe County Sheriff Adan Mendoza said there was no immediate indication of foul play.

Police did not provide a cause of death but have said an investigation is ongoing.

ABC Australia

Pics and bodycam from inside their home

[corpsehands]

Carbon monoxide or ritual suicide.

[Bleed]

Originally Posted by corpsehands ↗

Carbon monoxide or ritual suicide.

I was thinking along similar lines.. gas leak or suicide pact.

[rohmell]

Originally Posted by Bleed ↗

I was thinking along similar lines.. gas leak or suicide pact.

Yeah, but why kill the dog?

[William May]

My thoughts are:

A.Wife was feeling bad, opened the pill bottle, then had a heart attack or stroke and fell on the floor.

B. Dog, who was watching her, ate some of the "people treats" scattered on the floor. Croaked immediately. (Nitroglycerin pills for a heart problem, perhaps?)

C. Gene hears noise, goes to see, and finds wife dead on floor, goes for help, but he himself, distraught, suffers a heart attack or stroke as he opens the front door to go to the neighbors house, and falls down and dies.

They said the front door was opened, the 2 live dogs were just milling around, and both of the bodies had started to decompose, so they probably died a couple days previously.

They said they checked for carbon monoxide, but none was detected. They had the gas company come out to the house, and they said there were no odors or problems with the gas system.The report I read said there was no evidence of any criminal activity. (That they saw, YET.) The house was in a gated community, and they said it was a very modest home. The house next door was appraised at $7.5 Million. Hackman's house was said to only be valued at $1 Million. Neighborhood was reportedly very quiet, and everyone knew everybody else.

Never heard of any health problems with Gene, but he was 95, so on the edge anyway.

His wife was just 64, but she must have had some health problems, or she wouldn't have been opening pills when she fell dead.

Just my analysis, but remember, it's by someone who graduated from the Colombian School of Forensic Medicine and Plumbing. So don't hold your breath. (I don't want to read about deaths scattered across the entire U.S. because of people holding their breath!)

Also, I don't think Gene Hackman had any plumbing problems.

As of 2-28-25, tests for carbon monoxide came back negative.

[kellyhound]

The Santa Fe County Sheriff's Office has requested carbon monoxide and toxicology tests, with results still pending.

Initial checks by the fire department and New Mexico Gas Company found no evidence of a carbon monoxide leak or gas-related issues, though speculation about carbon monoxide poisoning has surfaced, including from Hackman’s daughter, Elizabeth Jean, who mentioned it as a possibility.

The investigation is ongoing, and official autopsy reports, which could take 4-6 weeks, are needed to establish the precise cause of death.

The other two dogs, found alive and healthy, were also German Shepherds, but their ages weren’t specified. Reports indicate the deceased dog was found 10-15 feet from Arakawa in a bathroom closet, showing signs of decay similar to the human bodies, suggesting it had been dead for some time. Without an official report it is not known yet which dog died or its age.

[x68000]

US investigators are trying to establish how Oscar-winning actor Gene Hackman and his wife, classical pianist Betsy Arakawa, died after the discovery of their bodies at their home in the US state of New Mexico.
Officials said on Friday that evidence points to Hackman having been dead since 17 February - 10 days before the couples' bodies were found.

The bodies of the couple and one of their dogs were found by police on Wednesday at their home in Santa Fe, New Mexico, after a maintenance worker called emergency services.
In a recording of the 911 call obtained by the BBC, the emotional caller can be heard telling a dispatcher how he found the two bodies.
Hackman, 95, was discovered in a side room near the kitchen while Arakawa, 65, was found in a bathroom, at the property on Old Sunset Trail in Hyde Park.
The couple appeared to have been "dead for quite a while", said Sheriff Adan Mendoza.
Arakawa's body showed signs of "decomposition", and "mummification" in the hands and feet, a sheriff's detective said.
Hackman's remains "showed obvious signs of death, similar and consistent" with those on his spouse.
A German Shepherd dog owned by the couple was found dead in a bathroom closet near to Arakawa.

[WonderMomma]

Originally Posted by x68000 ↗

Officials said on Friday that evidence points to Hackman having been dead since 17 February - 10 days before the couples' bodies were found.

I believe it was the last time his pacemaker recorded any activity or something.

[kellyhound]

Both Hackman and Arakawa, 65, were tested negative for carbon monoxide.

Affiant believes that the circumstances surrounding the death of the two deceased individuals to be suspicious enough in nature to require a thorough search and investigation because the reporting party found the front door of the residence unsecured and opened, deputies observed a healthy dog running loose on the property, another healthy dog near the deceased female, a deceased dog laying 10-15 feet from the deceased female in a closet of the bathroom, the heater being moved, the pill bottle being opened and pills scattered next to the female, the male decedent being located in a separate room of the residence.

A police deputy found Arakawa’s body in the bathroom with a space heater near her head. “He advised he suspected the heater could have fallen in the event the female abruptly fell to the ground.

He also observed an orange prescription bottle on the counter-top near the deceased female. The prescription bottle appeared opened with pills scattered on the counter-top.

The deputy “suspected the male individual has suddenly fallen” and “showed obvious signs of death, similar and consistent with the female decedent.”

As part of the investigation, authorities may search the property and its “furniture, walls, plumbing equipment, or gas lines in or around the residence.” The affidavit adds that “Affiant is aware through training and experience individuals exposed to gas leaks (or poisonous gas) can suffer immediate and unexpected death.”

Gene Hackman's body, along with that of his wife Betsy Arakawa and one of their dogs, was discovered by maintenance workers during a welfare check at their Santa Fe, New Mexico home on February 26, 2025.

According to a search warrant filed by the Santa Fe County Sheriff's Office, the workers had arrived at the residence on Old Sunset Trail in Hyde Park to perform maintenance and became concerned when they found the front door ajar and received no response from the homeowners.

They then contacted neighborhood security, who conducted the welfare check and observed the unresponsive couple through a window, prompting a 911 call.

Sheriff's deputies arrived around 1:45 p.m. and confirmed the deaths, finding Hackman in a mudroom near the kitchen and Arakawa in a bathroom.

The maintenance workers had not been in contact with Hackman or Arakawa for approximately two weeks prior, which aligns with the advanced state of decomposition noted by investigators.

[marcos_69]

Originally Posted by rohmell ↗

Yeah, but why kill the dog?

The dog planned it.