Investigations: Hackman death largely enlightened – wife died first

Schauzielle Gene Hackman and his wife Betsy Arakawa died of natural death, according to the investigators. That resulted in the autopsy of their corpses. However, the investigations pointed out that Arakawa died a week before her husband-and the Oscar winner Hackman, who was suffering from Alzheimer’s, then continued for days with her body in the house in Santa Fe in the US state of New Mexico. “It may well be that he was not aware of her death,” said medical investigator Heather Jarrell at a press conference.

Jarrell announced that the autopsy of the body of Arakawa showed that the 65-year-old probably died on February 11 of a disease triggered by so-called Hantaviruses. The pathogens affect the respiratory tract. Hackman himself was probably a week later, on February 18, a cardiovascular disease.

The examinations had also confirmed the advanced Alzheimer’s disease of the 95-year-old. “He was in a very bad state of health and had a serious heart disease. And I think that was ultimately the cause of his death,” concluded the doctor.

Heart pacemaker data provide information

Everything indicates that Arakawa died first, Jarell said. Sheriff Adan Mendoza said that it was assuming that Hackman had lived in the house next to his dead wife for days.

Since the dead couple was discovered together with a dead dog on Wednesday last week, the investigation has been in full swing. An analysis by Hackman’s pacemaker showed that the last heart activities were recorded on February 18.

Arakawa was last seen on recordings of surveillance cameras of a drugstore from February 11th. After that there was no longer a sign of life. E-mails, for example, remained unanswered.

The entrance door was wide open

A comprehensive examination had been initiated because of the unusual circumstances and prominence of the couple. While Arakawa’s body was lying on the floor in the bathroom, Hackman’s lifeless body was found in the entrance area of ​​the house. In addition to the dead dog, the investigators discovered two other dogs that were still alive.

The wording of a search command showed that the front door was open. Investigators excluded a crime early on. The first results brought no evidence of traces of external violence. Even carbon monoxide poisoning, such as a gas leak, was not found.

Hackman and Arakawa lived very withdrawn

Although the investigation seems to be largely concluded, there are no clear answers to some questions: In social networks and US media, it was speculated why the corpses of the two spouses seem to have only been discovered days or weeks after death – and whether there were no employees, nursing staff or family members who could have inquired about the condition of the couple.

In fact, Hackman and Arakawa lived very well in their house. According to the couple of media reports, the neighbors hardly saw it.

Hackman was one of the most outstanding actors in his generation. The two-time Oscar winner achieved world fame with films such as “French Connection” (1971), “The Conversation” (1974) and “Merciless” (1992). In the early 2000s, he finally pulled back from Hollywood’s spotlight.