Authorities in Santa Fe are investigating the death of Oscar-winning actor Gene Hackman and his wife, the classical pianist Betsy Arakawa, after the couple and one of their dogs were discovered dead in their New Mexico home on Wednesday. Hackman, who during his 40-year career appeared in popular films like Superman, The Royal Tenenbaums, and Bonnie & Clyde, was 95; Arakawa was 64. Investigators say they were found in separate rooms and appeared to have been dead for some time.
A search-warrant affidavit obtained by the New York Times early Thursday says foul play is not currently suspected, though investigators now say the deaths are “suspicious enough in nature to require a thorough search and investigation.” Here’s what we know.
Hackman, Arakawa, and the couple’s German shepherd were discovered on Wednesday.
According to the search-warrant affidavit obtained by the Times, the sheriff’s deputies arrived at Hackman’s house on Wednesday after receiving an emergency call from a maintenance worker. The two workers who discovered the couple’s bodies reportedly found the front door to the house ajar, though authorities did not find signs of forced entry. A deputy found Arakawa dead and lying on her side on the floor of a bathroom, a space heater near her head and scattered pills and an open prescription bottle on the counter. Per the Times, the deputy who found Arakawa, whose body showed signs of decomposition, says the heater could have fallen with her in the event that she “abruptly fell to the ground.”
Authorities reportedly discovered Hackman’s body in the mudroom, in a similar state of decomposition; a deputy on the scene said it appeared he had “suddenly fallen.” The two maintenance workers told police they last interacted with the couple two weeks prior, and a spokesperson for the sheriff said there was no sign that the couple had been shot or had other types of wounds. The body of one of the couple’s German shepherds was found a few feet away from Arakawa, inside the bathroom closet. Two of the couple’s other dogs were reportedly found alive, healthy, and running around elsewhere on the property.
Their cause of death hasn’t been determined.
Early Thursday, the Santa Fe sheriff’s office released a statement saying foul play was not suspected in the deaths. The fire department didn’t find signs of a carbon-monoxide leak or clear signs of a gas leak in the home, but autopsy results are still pending. In a phone interview, investigators told the Times they are still searching the home and looking into the cause of the death, adding that no note had been found and that the bodies showed no signs of trauma. “The autopsy is going to tell us more,” the sheriff told the Times.
A local gas company is working with the sheriff’s department in the investigation.
The Associated Press reports that New Mexico Gas Co. is currently working with the Santa Fe County sheriff’s department in the investigation. According to the warrant, the utility tested gas lines around the house after the bodies were discovered and found no issues at the time, nor signs of a gas leak. A detective told AP that people exposed to carbon-monoxide poisoning or gas leaks might not show signs of it.
The Cut has reached out to the Santa Fe County sheriff’s office for comment and will update this post if we hear back.