Gene Hackman died of heart disease a week after his wife

Santa Fe, New Mexico: Oscar-winning actor Gene Hackman was in an advanced state of Alzheimer’s and died of heart disease and other factors likely days after his wife, Betsy Arakawa, died of a rare syndrome spread by mice, according to autopsy results released in New Mexico.

The 95-year-old actor, 64-year-old Arakawa, and one of their dogs were found dead on February 26 in separate rooms of their Santa Fe home.

Authorities ruled out foul play and immediate tests for carbon monoxide poisoning were negative.

Hackman’s heart disease and the hantavirus pulmonary syndrome that caused Arakawa’s death were announced at a press conference at the Santa Fe Sherriff’s office on Saturday (AEDT).

The sheriff told reporters last week that a pathologist determined the last signal from the actor’s pacemaker was from February 17, making it likely that was the last day of the actor’s life.

Hackman and Arakawa, a pianist, lived in Santa Fe since the 1980s and were active in the city’s art community and culinary scene. In recent years, the couple were seen less often in town as his health deteriorated. They lived a very private life before their deaths, Mendoza said.

Loading

A caretaker at their gated community discovered the couple dead. Sheriff’s deputies found Hackman in the kitchen. Arakawa and a dog were found in a bathroom, with scattered pills from an open prescription bottle on the bathroom counter.

Both Hackman and Arakawa appeared to have suddenly fallen to the floor and neither showed signs of blunt force trauma.