Betsy Arakawa’s final hours: Gene Hackman’s wife visited grocery store, local pet food store before death
SANTA FE, NEW MEXICO: Less than two weeks after Oscar-winning actor Gene Hackman and his wife Betsy Arakawa’s partially mummified bodies were discovered in their Santa Fe luxury home, authorities are slowly gaining an understanding of the couple’s final hours.
During a press conference on Friday, March 7, the authorities revealed that the Oscar-winning actor's classical pianist wife died of hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS), which led to a fatal fluid build-up in her lungs.
Soon, another report emerged that chronicled Arakawa’s last moments before tragically passing away from HPS.
Betsy Arakawa’s final moments revealed
During the press conference on Friday, it was revealed that Betsy Arakawa, 65, died around February 11.
As reported by Daily Mail, the classical pianist might have lain weak from the fatal rodent-borne disease, as her Alzheimer’s-struck elderly husband was unable to help her.
As the authorities started putting pieces of the puzzle together to understand her final days, Santa Fe County Sheriff Adan Mendoza revealed that on February 9, she had collected the couple’s dog Zinna from a veterinary clinic where the 12-year-old Australian Kelpie mix canine underwent a surgery.
It also explains why Zinna’s corpse was found in the crate near Arakawa’s body, which was discovered in the bathroom with pills scattered nearby.
As reported by the outlet, the police confirmed that Arakawa succumbed to HPS sometime around February 11.
But the day proved to be an eventful day for her as on that day, probably hours before her passing, she sent an email to her massage therapist. In the afternoon, Arakawa also went to the grocery store.
Hackman’s wife was also recorded on CCTV visiting a pharmacy where she was wearing a face mask. As reported by the New York Times, her friends shared that she often wore face masks to avoid transporting any germs to her medically vulnerable husband.
According to the sheriff, she also visited a local pet food store the same afternoon, and returned to her local area around 5.15 pm.
It has been reported that her email correspondence stopped after February 11, leading the authorities to believe she died sometime during that day.
After returning home from her errand, Arakawa's health presumably started declining rapidly and she subsequently headed toward the bathroom, from where her mummified remains were found after a fortnight.
How did Gene Hackman die?
During the same press conference, it was revealed that ‘The French Connection’ actor died from a combination of several factors. On February 26, the couple’s bodies, along with their pet dog Zinna’s lifeless corpse, were found.
According to New Mexico’s Chief Medical Examiner, Dr Heather Jerrell, Hackman died of hypertensive and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease. His pacemaker reportedly stopped recording information on February 18, leading the authorities to believe he died around that time - a week after his spouse’s demise, as reported by The Independent.
Dr Jerrell further shared, “He was in an advanced state of Alzheimer’s and it is quite possible he was not aware she was deceased."
