Feb. 28 (UPI) – Gene Hackman and his wife, Betsia Arakawa, tested negative for carbon monoxide poisoning, the Santa Fe Sheriff's Department in New Mexico said Friday the day after they were found dead with their dog.
The results were negative, but Santa Fe County Sheriff Adan Mendoza said at a press conference that the pathologist would decide whether to rule out toxic gases as the cause of death.
Mwendosa told reporters that “the attitude and cause of death have not been determined,” but the autopsy findings pointed out that there were no external trauma. Toxicology reports noted that initial autopsy findings did not contain external trauma, but it could take up to three months.
“We put everything on the table,” Mendoza said.
He also said that neither Hackman, 95, nor 65-year-old Arakawa, is likely to be a fatal fall.
They have not decided who died first, Mendoza said.
Hackman may have passed away more than a week ago – on February 17th, it was the last day his pacemaker recorded the “event,” Mendoza said at a press conference.
“It was a very good assumption and I think that was the last day of his life.”
Authorities originally said there was no foul play, but investigators called the death “suspectful.”
“There were no signs of a struggle,” Mendoza told reporters. “There were no signs of anything missing or disturbed in the house, which would indicate that there was a crime that occurred.
They did not discover obvious signs of gas leaks, signs of foul play, or that they weren't out of place at home.
Mendoza said some doors were unlocked.
Two other dogs were found alive at the facility.
The Santa Fe County Sheriff's Office went to the house after the maintenance workers arrived, but no one answered the door. Nearby security said the couple was on the ground and didn't respond through the windows, officials said.
According to the warrant, Hackman was found dead in a mudroom near the kitchen.
Arakawa was on the bathroom floor with a space heater near my head.
According to the affidavit, a bottle was found with pills “scattered across the countertops.”
Thyroid drugs, diltiazem blood pressure drugs, and Tylenol were collected from the real estate.
In a search document obtained by Fox News Digital, investigators listed two mobile phones, MyQuest Records, a 2025 planner.
The German shepherd was found dead a few feet away in the bathroom closet.
The corresponding aide said in a summary of the search warrant summary: “If the heater suddenly fell to the ground, it could have been the heater.” Hackman's suspected deputy may have suddenly fallen as he observed him with a cane and sunglasses walking near his body.
Hackman retired from acting after performing at Welcome To Moose Port in 2004. French connection, conversation, Relentless and Hooger.
