Deaths of Gene Hackman and Wife Called Suspicious by Investigators

Officials said they found an opened bottle of pills near Hackman’s wife.

Actor Gene Hackman arrives with his wife, Betsy Arakawa, for the 60th annual Golden Globe Awards in Beverly Hills, Calif., on Jan. 19, 2003. Mark J. Terrill/AP Photo

Investigators said on Feb. 27 that Academy Award-winning actor Gene Hackman, 95, his wife, 63, and one of their dogs had been dead for a substantial period of time before a worker found their bodies at their home in New Mexico this week.

Hackman’s body was found near the kitchen area, officials with the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office wrote in a search warrant of their property. The body of his wife, Betsy Arakawa, was found in a bathroom near a space heater. There was also an opened bottle of prescription medication and pills scattered on a nearby countertop, officials noted.