Oscar-winner Gene Hackman, wife Betsy Arakawa and their dog were dead for some time, warrant shows
SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — Oscar-winner Gene Hackman, his wife and one of their dogs were apparently dead for some time before a maintenance worker discovered their bodies at the couple’s home in Santa Fe, New Mexico, investigators said.
The bodies were found Wednesday. Denise Avila, a sheriff’s office spokesperson, said there was no indication they had been shot or had any wounds that would indicate foul play. But Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office detectives wrote in a search warrant affidavit investigators thought the deaths were “suspicious enough in nature to require a thorough search and investigation.”
Hackman, 95, was in an entryway, and his 65-year-old wife, Betsy Arakawa, was lying on her right side in the bathroom. A space heater was next to her head and may have fallen when she abruptly dropped to the floor, according to the affidavit.
Actor Gene Hackman arrives with his wife, Betsy Arakawa, for the 60th Annual Golden Globe Awards in Beverly Hills, Calif., Sunday, Jan. 19, 2003. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill, File)
Worker found bodies of Hackman and his wife
According to the search warrant affidavit, a maintenance worker reported that the home’s front door was open when he arrived to do routine work Wednesday, and he called police after finding the bodies.
But in a 911 call, the maintenance worker said he was unable to get inside when the operator asked whether the people in the house were breathing.
“I have no idea,” the subdivision’s caretaker said. “I am not inside the house. It’s closed. It’s locked. I can’t go in. But I can see she’s laying down on the floor from the window.”
He and another worker later told authorities that they rarely saw the homeowners and their last contact with them had been about two weeks ago.
Hackman appeared to have fallen, a deputy observed. A cane was nearby.
A dead German shepherd was found in a bathroom closet near Arakawa, police said. Santa Fe County Sheriff Adan Mendoza said during a press conference Thursday that the dog was found in a kennel. Two healthy dogs were found on the property — one inside and one outside.
“There was no indication of a struggle,” Mendoza said. “There was no indication of anything that was missing from the home or disturbed, you know, that would be indication that there was a crime that had occurred.”
Results of autopsies conducted on both bodies are not available yet, sheriff’s officials said, noting that carbon monoxide and toxicology test results are pending.
The search warrant affidavit suggests that police appear to have a working theory that “some kind of gas poisoning” happened, but that they don’t know yet and aren’t ruling anything out, Loyola Marymount University law professor Laurie Levenson said.
Actor Gene Hackman waves as he starts out for a practice run in his Toyota Celica, Feb. 5, 1983 at the Daytona International Speedway in preparation for the Daytona 24 Hour Endurac Race. This race marks the start of Hickman?s career as a professional driver. (AP Photo/Bob Self, File)
“They don’t have clear evidence that it’s any type of homicide, but they’re asking for blunt instruments or other weapons that could be used,” said Levenson, who has no connection to the investigation. “It doesn’t also look like some kind of planned double-suicide.”
William & Mary Law School professor Jeffrey Bellin said the request for a search warrant was somewhat unusual because investigators who file one usually believe a specific crime was committed. In this case, no alleged crime was mentioned, Bellin said.
Police tend to overstate what they know, but this is the opposite, said Bellin, who also isn’t tied to the investigation.
“It just struck me as very careful in a way that search warrant affidavits often are not,” he said.
The gruff but beloved Hackman was among the most accomplished actors of his generation, appearing as villains, heroes and antiheroes in dozens of dramas, comedies and action films from the 1960s until his retirement in the early 2000s.
Gene Hackman discusses the effect of an Academy Award nomination on his career, March 24, 1972. (AP Photo/George Brich, File)
Gene Hackman, winner of Best Supporting Actor at academy awards in March 1993. (AP Photo, File)
“He was loved and admired by millions around the world for his brilliant acting career, but to us he was always just Dad and Grandpa,” his daughters and granddaughter said in a statement Thursday. “We will miss him sorely and are devastated by the loss.”
Worker found bodies of Hackman and his wife
According to the search warrant affidavit, a maintenance worker reported that the home’s front door was open when he arrived to do routine work Wednesday, and he called police after finding the bodies.
But in a 911 call, the maintenance worker said he was unable to get inside when the operator asked whether the people in the house were breathing.
“I have no idea,” the subdivision’s caretaker said. “I am not inside the house. It’s closed. It’s locked. I can’t go in. But I can see she’s laying down on the floor from the window.”
He and another worker later told authorities that they rarely saw the homeowners and their last contact with them had been about two weeks ago.
Hackman appeared to have fallen, a deputy observed. A cane was nearby.
Worker found bodies of Hackman and his wife
According to the search warrant affidavit, a maintenance worker reported that the home’s front door was open when he arrived to do routine work Wednesday, and he called police after finding the bodies.
But in a 911 call, the maintenance worker said he was unable to get inside when the operator asked whether the people in the house were breathing.
“I have no idea,” the subdivision’s caretaker said. “I am not inside the house. It’s closed. It’s locked. I can’t go in. But I can see she’s laying down on the floor from the window.”
He and another worker later told authorities that they rarely saw the homeowners and their last contact with them had been about two weeks ago.
Hackman appeared to have fallen, a deputy observed. A cane was nearby.
