Legendary Hollywood actor Gene Hackman was found dead with his musician wife Betsy Arakawa and their dog at their home in Santa Fe, New Mexico on Wednesday (February 26)
A distressing 911 call was made by the maintenance worker who discovered Gene Hackman’s decomposing body.
The double Oscar winner was found dead aged 95 at his home in Santa Fe, New Mexico on Wednesday (February 26) alongside his musician wife Betsy Arakawa, 63, and their dog. The deaths are being investigated but police said they suspect no signs of foul play – the cause of their deaths has not been confirmed.
According to a police warrant, Arakawa was found in a bathroom, decomposed with bloating to her face and mummification on her hands and feet. Hackman was found in a similar stage of decomposition, in a room near to the kitchen of the mansion.
One of the maintenance workers who found Gene and his wife reportedly made a panicked call to the emergency services. In the distressing phone call, he told the 911 call operator there were “two, or one deceased” bodies inside the home and the legendary actor and his wife were “not moving”.
In the call, obtained by TMZ, the individual shared the address of the home and said he would meet the emergency staff at the gate to the property. The man making the call could be heard sobbing and said: “Damn, damn, damn,” as the call operator issued a message to paramedics.
He was unsure of the gender or ages of the couple and said there was no sign of movement at the home but requested urgent assistance. “Just send somebody up here quick,” he said. When asked if the patients were breathing or awake, he replied: “I have no idea, I have no idea, I’m not inside the house, it’s closed. I see she’s laying down on the floor.”
It’s believed Hackman may have died of a sudden fall as a walking cane was reportedly found next to his body and his glasses were thrown from it. In early 2024, the double Oscar winner was seen looking frail and walking with a stick during a rare public outing with Betsy.
Cops have reportedly requested a search warrant for Hackman’s home as the deaths are “suspicious enough” to require a search and investigation. The detective who requested it, according to TMZ, thinks “the death of the two deceased individuals to be suspicious enough in nature to require a thorough search and investigation”.
Three German Shepherds were found at the home in total, one of which was sadly found deceased inside a kennel. According to TMZ, the front door of the double Oscar winner’s property was found to be “unsecured and opened”, and that deputies discovered a healthy dog running loose on the property and another dog which was alive.
It was also claimed by there were “no obvious signs of a gas leak” at the home. The fire department detected no indication of a carbon monoxide leak or poisoning, according to a search warrant.
Santa Fe County Sheriff Adan Mendoza said cops are still investigating the deaths and aren’t ruling anything out. He said there were no obvious signs of trauma to the bodies and that a suicide note had not been found, but that it seemed like they had been deceased for “quite a while”.
Hackman’s daughter Elizabeth Jean Hackman said the family believe they might have died from carbon monoxide poisoning. She said police had found no signs of foul play but had revealed the bodies of the actor and his wife may have lain undiscovered for some time.
Confirming their deaths, Mendoza told Santa Fe New Mexican: “All I can say is that we’re in the middle of a preliminary death investigation, waiting on approval of a search warrant. We can confirm that both Gene Hackman and his wife were found deceased Wednesday afternoon at their residence on Sunset Trail.
“This is an active investigation – however, at this time we do not believe that foul play was a factor. I want to assure the community and neighbourhood that there’s no immediate danger to anyone.”
During his incredible acting career, Gene won two Oscars. The first was for Best Actor for playing Jimmy “Popeye” Doyle in The French Connection, and the second was for Best Supporting Actor as “Little” Bill Daggett in Clint Eastwood film Unforgiven.
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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
