Forensic experts on Friday concluded that Oscar-winning actor Gene Hackman died of heart disease with complications from Alzheimer’s disease a week after a rare, rodent-borne disease took the life of his wife at their home in Santa Fe, New Mexico, ending more than a week of mystery surrounding the death of one of Hollywood’s most beloved stars.
The partially mummified remains of The French Connection star, 95, and Betsy Arakawa, 65, were discovered on Feb. 26 when maintenance and security workers arrived at the home and alerted police.
Authorities unraveled the mysterious circumstances and revealed that Arakawa likely died on Feb. 11 at home from hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, a rare, but potentially fatal, disease spread by infected rodent droppings.
Photo: AP
Hackman, in the advanced stages of Alzheimer’s, apparently was unaware that his wife was dead.
“He was in a very poor state of health. He had significant heart disease, and I think ultimately that’s what resulted in his death,” New Mexico Chief Medical Investigator Heather Jarrell said. “It’s quite possible he was not aware she was deceased.”
The deaths were ruled to be from natural causes.
Santa Fe County Sheriff Adan Mendoza said Arakawa’s last known outing was a round of errands and shopping on Feb. 11, when she visited a pharmacy, a pet store and a grocery store before returning to the couple’s gated neighborhood that evening.
Arakawa stopped answering e-mails that day. The couple’s cellphone communications have not yet been analyzed.
Hackman’s pacemaker last showed signs of activity a week later, indicating an abnormal heart rhythm on Feb. 18, the day he likely died, Jarrell said.
Hackman was found in the home’s entryway, and Arakawa was found in a bathroom. Their bodies were decomposing with some mummification, a consequence of body type and climate in Santa Fe’s especially dry air at an elevation of nearly 2.2km.
Experts believe Hackman was severely impaired due to Alzheimer’s disease and unable to deal with his wife’s death in the last week of his life — or seek help after she died.
Additional reporting by AFP
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