[Image: People / Facebook]
The entertainment world is still reeling after news broke of the deaths of Gene Hackman and his wife, Betsy Arakawa.
Hackman, 95, and Arakawa, 63, were both found dead inside their Santa Fe home, along with one of their pet dogs on Thursday.
According to police, the couple and their dog were found in separate rooms and appeared to have been “dead for some time”. The Santa Fe County Sheriff Department addressed rumours about possible carbon monoxide poisoning, saying that after testing, there were “no obvious signs of a gas leak”.
Police initially said that foul play was not suspected but have since ruled their deaths “suspicious” enough to require further investigation.
People reported that the actor, his wife and their dog were found in separate rooms and appeared to have been “dead for some time”, with an open pill bottle and pills scattered near the bodies, and the door to the home was left open. The dead dog, a German Shepherd, was found in a closet in the bathroom. Another dog was found running loose on the property.
In a 911 call obtained by TMZ, the maintenance person who first spotted their bodies requested immediate help after saying he’d seen two people through a window who were not moving inside the couple’s home. He could not identify the deceased parties’ ages or genders.
Arakawa’s body was found in the bathroom “in a state of decomposition with bloating in her face and mummification in her hands and feet,” while Hackman’s body was “fully clothed” with his sunglasses found near his body, indicating that he may have fallen down.
Hackman, a five-time Oscar nominee – and two-time winner – had a diverse career with roles in the 1998 animated film Antz and the 1996 comedy The Birdcage. He retired from acting after 2004’s Welcome to Mooseport.
Arakawa, who was reportedly born in Hawaii in the early ’60s, avoided the spotlight and was a classical pianist and an entrepreneur. For years, she’d served as co-owner of a Santa Fe-based home furnishings store, per The New York Times.
[Source: Independent]
