Finally, the truth came to light concerning the deaths of two-time Oscar winner Gene Hackman, 95 and his wife, Betsy Arakawa, 65.
On March 8, 2025, the Santa Fe County Sheriff Office finally announced their findings regarding the couple’s deaths, whose bodies were discovered in their secluded Santa Fe home on February 26.
Based on autopsy reports and last known records of Betsy’s activities, investigators concluded that Betsy likely died on February 11, followed by Gene roughly a week later.
Betsy, a classical pianist turned furniture store owner, died after contracting hantavirus – a flu-like disease spread by rodents. The disease itself is rare, but has a higher mortality rate. Due to its resemblance to regular flu, the infected often discover they have it after it’s too late. According to health officials, it could progress to cardiogenic shock over a period of a few hours, with most deaths occurring within the first day.
On February 11 – the last day she was seen – Betsy was captured on surveillance camera visiting CVS while wearing a face mask, likely because she had developed symptoms then. Later, she was seen driving back to her gated community residence. That was her last sighting and possibly, the last day she was alive. As Gene’s sole caretaker, Betsy conducted her daily correspondences through emails; she stopped responding to messages after February 11.
Without his wife around, Gene – who has Alzheimer’s – likely could not care for himself nor seek help. He died a week later, lying in a mudroom next to his glasses and cane. His pacemaker recorded its last activity on February 17. One of the couple’s dogs – a 12-year-old Australian Kelpie mix – was also found dead, locked inside its crate.
In the past few years, the elderly couple has become more reclusive, which explains why it took so long for people to realize what’s wrong. It was a maintenance worker who discovered their bodies and reported it to the police.