Gene Hackman & wife Betsy Arakawa during The 60th Annual Golden Globe Awards – Arrivals at The Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, California, United States.
Jeffrey Mayer | Wireimage | Getty Images
Legendary actor Gene Hackman and his wife, Betsy Arakawa, had been dead for “quite a while” before their bodies were found in separate rooms in their Santa Fe, New Mexico, home, authorities said amid an ongoing investigation into their “suspicious” deaths.
Hackman, 95, and Arakawa, 64, were found at their home on Wednesday, alongside their dog. An investigation is underway into the circumstances surrounding the deaths.
A search warrant says the deaths are “suspicious enough in nature to require a thorough search and investigation.”
His family released a brief statement Thursday saying he was “was loved and admired by millions around the world for his brilliant acting career, but to us he was always just Dad and Grandpa.”
“We will miss him sorely and are devastated by the loss,” they said.
Deputies were called at about 1:45 p.m. Wednesday to an address on Old Sunset Trail in Hyde Park, “where Gene Hackman, 95, and his wife Betsy Arakawa, 64 and a dog were found deceased,” the county sheriff’s public information officer, Denise Womack Avila, said in a statement.
Two maintenance workers said they found the front door of the home ajar and the couple dead inside, according to the search warrant. It states that deputies “did not observe any signs of forced entry into the home.”
Arakawa’s body was found on the floor of a bathroom. A space heater was near her head and a bottle of prescription pills was located on the counter, the warrant says.
The responding deputy believes the heater “could have fallen in the event the female abruptly fell to the ground.” The pills from the bottle were “scattered on the counter-top,” it says. A German shepherd was found about 10 feet from her in a closet in the bathroom.
Hackman was found dead in a mudroom near the kitchen, according to the warrant. It states that the deputy believes he may have suddenly fallen.
Both bodies showed “obvious signs of death,” the warrant states. Arakawa’s also showed signs of “body decomposition.”
Two other dogs were found alive on the property; one was in the bathroom with Arakawa and the other was outside the home.
Sheriff Adan Mendoza said there are no obvious signs right now of foul play, but they are not ruling anything out.
“It’s not normal to find two people deceased in the residence,” he said Thursday. “That’s concerning. And then there was also a dog that was in a kennel that was also found deceased.”
The fire department responded to the home and conducted testing, but “did not locate signs of a carbon monoxide leak or poisoning,” the warrant states.
New Mexico Gas Company, which provides natural gas service to the home, conducted testing on a gas line in and around the residence.
“As of now, there are no signs or evidence indicating there were any problems associated to the pipes,” the warrant says.
The gas company said it is assisting the sheriff’s office.
The bodies of Hackman and Arakawa were not formally identified until 12:30 a.m. Thursday (2:30 a.m. ET).
In 2012, Hackman was airlifted to a hospital after he was hit by a car while riding a bike in the Florida Keys, but escaped with minor injuries.
The two-time Oscar winner was known for his roles in the 1974 thriller “The Conversation,” 1967’s “Bonnie and Clyde,” and the 1971 crime drama “The French Connection,” which earned him his first Academy Award win.
He would win his second Oscar in 1993 for “Unforgiven.”
Over the course of his career, he earned four Golden Globes, two British Academy Film Awards (BAFTAs) and one Screen Actors Guild Award. His last movie was 2004’s “Welcome to Mooseport.” He retired from on-screen acting that same year.
