Gene Hackman and wife seen in last public photo before ‘suspicious’ deaths
Hackman and Arakawa, whose bodies were found Wednesday in their Santa Fe home under what police are calling “suspicious” circumstances, were last publicly photographed together on March 28, 2024. Hackman was spotted holding onto his wife’s arm. He held onto a walking cane in his other hand. Arakawa looked out in the distance and held up her arm to support her husband.
The couple were pictured outside Pappadeaux Seafood Kitchen in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Hackman has lived in the area since the 1980s. The late actor wore casual attire in a blue patterned button-up with a gray vest zipped over, light green cargo pants, a baseball cap with sunglasses and sneakers. Arakawa wore a printed floral top with denim jeans and brown boots.
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Gene Hackman and wife Betsy Awakara were last pictured together on March 28, 2024 during a sighting at Pappadeaux’s Seafood Kitchen in New Mexico. (Backgrid )
While Hackman and his wife mainly lived a private life, the last event they attended together appeared to be at the 2003 Golden Globes, as he was honored with the Cecil B. DeMille Award.
Today, the Santa Fe sheriff’s office released a search warrant inventory of the items that were taken from Hackman and his wife’s residence after their deaths, Fox News Digital has learned.
In the documents, obtained by Fox News Digital, investigators list two cell phones, MyQuest records, a 2025 planner, thyroid medication, blood pressure medication and Tylenol as the items they took from the residence.
Gene Hackman and wife Betsy Arakawa during the 60th Annual Golden Globe Awards in 2003. (Jeffrey Mayer/WireImage)
The Santa Fe sheriff’s office has scheduled a news conference for later today.
According to the search warrant affidavit, an orange prescription bottle was found near Hackman’s wife. It appeared to be open, with pills scattered on the countertop.
When asked whether the prescription bottles could be related to the deaths, Santa Fe County Sheriff Adan Mendoza told the “Today” show this morning, “That’s obviously very important evidence at the scene. That information was collected . . . passed to the medical investigator to help them make a determination . . . yes, we’re looking at that specifically, and other medications possibly in the residence . . . that is something of concern.”
Sheriff Mendoza, along with Santa Fe’s fire chief Brian Moya, shared more information about the ongoing investigation with “Today” and said that Hackman and Arakawa could have been dead “up to a couple of weeks.”
“Just based on their bodies and other evidence on the body, it appears several days and possibly up to a couple weeks,” Sheriff Mendoza answered when asked when the deaths could have occurred.
Gene Hackman and wife Betsy Arakawa married in 1991. (Donaldson Collection/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)
When asked whether Hackman and his wife died simultaneously or whether one passed before the other, the sheriff replied, “I think that’s very difficult to determine. I think it’s going to be pretty close.”
“You know, there’s no indication that anyone was moving about the house or doing anything different, so it’s very difficult to determine if they both passed at the same time or how close they passed together. We’re trying to put that information together and, obviously, with the assistance of the office of the medical investigator, I think the autopsy report is going to be the key to this investigation.”
He also stated, “We’re trying to put things together, a timeline when the decedents were last spoken to. Of course, we understand that is a challenge because they were very private individuals, and a private family, so we’re trying to put all that information together right now.”
Law enforcement officials talk outside the home of actor Gene Hackman on Thursday, Feb. 27, 2025, in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Hackman, his wife Betsy Arakawa and their dog were found dead in the home a day earlier. (AP Photo/Roberto Rosales)
The Oscar-winning actor was found dead alongside his wife, a classical pianist, and their dog in their sprawling Santa Fe, New Mexico, home on Wednesday afternoon.
Carbon monoxide and toxicology tests were ordered for both Hackman and his wife, as the manner and cause of death have not been determined.
Moya said at the time of the incident that his team had not determined anything that was “concerning” and declared that it was safe to investigate the home.
The entrance to the gated community where actor Gene Hackman, his wife Betsy Arakawa and their dog were found dead in their home is shown Thursday, Feb. 27, 2025, in Santa Fe, N.M. (AP Photo/Roberto Rosales)
He noted that the home had natural gas, and that there could have been a carbon monoxide leak that had dissipated by the time officials arrived on the scene, but added that he had not found any evidence of an active leak.
“When we arrived, we made sure that our people, as well as the sheriff, were safe, and there was nothing that we found. We also went back yesterday to do another round of searches,” Moya told “Today.”
He continued to describe the layout of Hackman’s home, saying, “It was a very large home, it took a while for all of us to locate.”
Sheriff Mendoza confirmed that there were several doors that were “unlocked at the residence.”
“I believe the front door was closed but unlocked and unsecured. There was one door that was ajar and that was towards the rear of the residence that two of the dogs that survived were coming in and out of the residence . . . we’re not sure if that door was open upon the arrival of the emergency personnel,” he pointed out.
Gene Hackman in the 1988 movie “Full Moon on Blue Water.” (Media Home Entertainment/Everett Collection)
The Santa Fe sheriff said the toxicology report may take up to three months for results, or “possibly longer,” depending on how “busy the laboratory is.” Mendoza added that his team hopes the results come “sooner rather than later,” so questions can be answered and help their investigation, along with the manners and causes of death.
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Mendoza said that he is “pretty confident there is no foul play, just based on the lack of evidence of foul play.”
“But we, of course, we’re not ruling that out . . . the autopsy results, the official results will steer us in the right direction. That could change, obviously, and we’re not ruling that out. This is an open investigation. It’s a couple [of] days old. We’re putting together the timeline, we’re trying to figure out all the evidence . . . the autopsy is key, and that’s going to take some time.”
Gene Hackman in a publicity still for the 1998 movie “ANTZ,” in which he played General Mandibula. (Dreamworks/Everett Collection)
In the search warrant affidavit obtained by Fox News Digital, officials revealed that Arakawa’s body had been found decomposed with bloating on her face and mummification in her hands and feet. Hackman was also found to have the same signs of decomposition as his wife.
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A harrowing 911 call, obtained by Fox News Channel, was made by a distressed maintenance worker after the man discovered the bodies of Hackman and his wife.
The employee frantically pleaded for police to rush to the New Mexico residence.
The Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office held a press conference regarding the investigation on Thursday.
Gene Hackman in the 1988 movie “Full Moon on Blue Water.” (Media Home Entertainment/Everett Collection)
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“A search warrant was executed just before 10 p.m. last night. They’ve been working diligently through the night and starting again in the morning to completely process the scene. We’re still in the preliminary steps of the investigation,” authorities said.
Hackman’s daughter Leslie told Fox News Digital on Thursday that although her father “was 95, he was in very good health,” adding that he did yoga and Pilates regularly.
Hackman said she hadn’t seen her father in a “few years,” only because he no longer traveled much, and she lives in California, but she said they were close and had “been in touch over the last couple of months.”
“I loved him dearly,” she said. “He was a genuinely good-hearted person.”
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Stephanie Giang-Paunon is an Entertainment Writer for Fox News Digital. Story tips can be sent to stephanie.giang@fox.com and on Twitter: @SGiangPaunon.
