Actor Gene Hackman and his wife Betsy Arakawa were found dead in their New Mexico home and police reportedly made a mistake while investigating the cause of their deaths
Police examining Gene Hackman’s death have reportedly admitted to making an error during the investigation.
The 95-year-old was found dead with his 63-year-old wife Betsy Arakawa, who showed signs of mummification, alongside one of their dogs on February 26, but according to USA TODAY, cops misidentified the animal that was sadly found dead.
The deaths have remained a mystery after the pair were discovered by a neighbourhood caretaker who saw them laying unresponsive through a window in their mansion. Police have been left stumped as no wounds were found and it has been reported that his wife was found with a state of “mummification on her feet”.
The dog which was found dead in the bathroom was 12-year-old Zinna, a reddish Australian Kelpie mixed breed, according to USA Today. However, police initially incorrectly said the dead dog was the couple’s German Shepherd, Bear.
Bear and the other surviving dog, Nikita, are being looked after elsewhere and it is not known how the misidentification happened.
When approached for a comment, Denise Womack-Avila, a spokeswoman for the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office said investigators may have just misidentified the breed. She told USA Today: “Our deputies do not deal with canines on a daily basis and I cannot currently speak to the condition or state of the dog’s body upon discovery.”
Meanwhile former FBI agent Bill Daly has explained that police are focussed on the couple’s phones, pills, and their trash as they piece together what happened.
Speaking to Fox News Digital, Daly said: “After receiving the cell phones, investigators can determine when they stopped moving, when they lost communication, which can tell the time of disablement or death.
“They can do geolocating around the property to see what was pinging around that time, though they won’t be able to tell who without a warrant, but can tell what activity there was before and afterward, even if they’re not suspecting foul play.”
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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
