Legendary actor Gene Hackman and his wife Betsy Arakawa were found dead in their New Mexico home on Wednesday, along with their dog, in circumstances authorities deemed “suspicious enough” to warrant a full investigation.
The cause of death has not yet been determined. According to a preliminary autopsy and officials, the couple showed no external trauma, and there were no immediate signs of foul play. There were also no immediate signs of carbon monoxide or natural gas leaks, authorities said.
The sheriff’s office said it would provide an update on the investigation at 3 p.m. Friday. local time in Santa Fe
According to the sheriff’s office, the couple’s bodies were found in separate rooms in their deserted Santa Fe home, with scattered bullets found in Arakawa’s.
Investigators have yet to determine whether Hackman and Arakawa died at the same time, Santa Fe County Sheriff Eden Mendoza told NBC’s Today Show Friday morning, but they were both likely dead for some time before they were discovered.
It looks like several days, possibly a few weeks Mendoza said. And narrowing down exactly when that was can be a challenge, experts told CNN.
Hackman, 95, was an Oscar-winning actor known for his roles in films such as The French Connection, Hoosiers Unforgiven and The Firm. Arakawa, Hackman’s junior by three decades, was a classical pianist.
Here’s what we know about his death.
A 911 caller saw Hackman and Arakawa lying on the floor through a window.
The bodies of Hackman and Arakawa were discovered by caretakers at the home just before 2 p.m. local time on Wednesday, a sheriff’s office affidavit for a search warrant obtained by CNN affiliate KOAT states.
A caller told 911 that he could see two unconscious people through a window but couldn’t get into the home, according to a call obtained by CNN.
No man, they’re not moving. Just get someone out of here quick the caller said.
The affidavit says police responded to the call and discovered Arakawa’s body inside the bathroom with an orange prescription pill bottle and pills scattered on the floor.
The affidavit says the body showed clear signs of death, body decomposition, facial swelling and poisoning (sic) in both hands and feet.
Hickman’s body was later found in the same condition on the floor near the kitchen, with a walking stick and sunglasses lying next to the body. The affidavit says the deputy suspected he had fallen suddenly.
A German Shepherd dog was also found dead in the bathroom. The dog was in a crate, police explained. The affidavit says the dog was in a closet. Two healthy dogs were found on the property.
Other clues could indicate the time of his death.
Mendoza told reporters Thursday that it The couple had been dead for a long time. The affidavit states that care workers told police they had not been in contact with the homeowners for two weeks.
A forensic investigator involved in the Hickman investigation told CNN that while the condition of the body can provide a general indication of the time of death, it can only be an estimate.
In ideal circumstances and under ideal circumstances, you can make a determination or get a general idea of how long they’ve been dead, but those situations don’t happen very often,” said Dr. Kendall Crowns, chief medical examiner for Tarrant County, Texas.
Even a full autopsy can’t determine the time of death, said Dr. Priya Banerjee, clinical assistant professor of forensic pathology at Brown University.
It’s not like TV where we have it to the day or the minute Banerjee said.
Instead, medical examiners have to rely on electronic evidence collected by police — such as phone records — to narrow down the timeline.
Often, if it’s more than a few days, there may be mail outside that hasn’t been collected Banerjee said. Even something like a Ring (doorbell) camera or a neighbor’s Ring camera that picked them up outside.
The deaths are ‘suspicious enough’ to warrant a full investigation.
The cause of the couple’s deaths is under investigation, according to the sheriff’s office.
The circumstances surrounding the deaths of the two deceased individuals are (considered) sufficiently suspicious in nature to warrant a full investigation and investigation a sheriff’s deputy said, according to the affidavit.
I think I’m fairly confident that there is no foul play based solely on the lack of evidence of foul play Mendoza told NBC on Friday. Of course, we’re not ruling it out.
Fire officials called to the scene did not detect any signs of carbon monoxide leakage or poisoning and a gas company crew that tested gas lines in and around the home did not immediately identify any problems, the affidavit said.
Hackman and Arakawa moved to the Santa Fe area a decade before he effectively retired from acting at age 74. “There was a kind of magic about it,” he told Architectural Digest in 1990.
“For decades, Gene chose Santa Fe as his home, living among us not as a Hollywood icon but as a low-key and friendly member of our community,” New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham said in a Facebook post Thursday.
The house the couple found themselves in is in a gated community at the end of a long, winding driveway. It was a home fit for a single star, offering sweeping views of the nearby mountains but secluded enough to be well beyond the reach of cellphone service.
Toxicology reports could take months.
Official autopsy and toxicology reports are pending, according to the sheriff’s office, and carbon monoxide and toxicology tests have been requested for Hackman and Arakawa.
Medical examiner’s spokesman Chris Ramirez said it typically takes four to six weeks to complete medical examiner reports with a final cause of death.
However, depending on the lab’s workload, toxicology reports can take three months or longer to complete, Mendoza told NBC.
Hackman’s daughters and granddaughter said in a statement that the actor’s family is devastated by the loss.
It is with deep sadness that we announce the passing of our father, Gene Hackman, and his wife, Betsy the statement said. He was loved and admired by millions around the world for his brilliant acting career, but to us he was always just a father and a grandfather. We will miss him dearly.
Hickman will be honored at the Oscars on Sunday.
News of Hackman’s death came just days before this weekend’s Academy Awards.
The actor will be honored at Sunday’s ceremony, a source familiar with the behind-the-scenes planning at the Oscars told CNN. Details have not been released but it is possible that the in memoriam” montage will be edited to include Hackman’s contributions to cinema.
Another possibility is a scripted mention of Hackman’s death from the awards show stage, perhaps by host Conan O’Brien or another entertainer.
In his five-decade career Hackman won two Oscars and was nominated for five. He won for his role as New York cop Popeye Doyle in The French Connection in 1971. Jeeta, a detective who gets his man but at a high cost. He won his second Oscar as Little Bill Daggett, the violent sheriff in Clint Eastwood’s 1992 film Unforgiven.
