Authorities revealed further recordings Friday connected to their investigation into the deaths of actor Gene Hackman and his wife, Betsy Arakawa, including photos of officers returning to the couple’s Santa Fe home days after their discovery to hunt for more evidence.
The bodies of Hackman, 95, and Arakawa, 65, were discovered on February 26 after maintenance and security staff notified police.
The Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office has begun providing redacted information on a continuous basis since a recent court decision allowed them to be made public as long as any photos of the deceased couple were concealed. More is expected.
The most recent release adds to what has already been made public, including a lengthy investigative report, images, and hours of body camera and surveillance video depicting the initial police response.
The new videos show officials interrogating workers and returning to the residence early in the investigation, before determining how Hackman and Arakawa died.
An hour-long video shows officers examining the house in early March for Arakawa’s laptop and any other evidence. Representatives from Arakawa’s family allowed them inside the house and escorted them to the bathroom, where her body was discovered.
In another video, detectives are looking through security footage at a drugstore for any footage of Arakawa from mid-February.
When the employee assisting them enquires as to what they are searching for, one of the investigators informs them that a woman has passed away.
“We’re trying to see her last moments,” the detective says.
Another video shows a man who handles pest control on the property telling officers that he hasn’t seen Hackman in at least a month, but that it’s common not to see or speak with the couple on his monthly trips.
When he last saw Hackman, he says they waved but did not speak.
“He was looking frail,” the worker says. “He was bent over with a cane. His hair was sort of wild.”
According to authorities, Arakawa died from the unusual hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, a rodent-borne disease that can induce flu-like symptoms, headaches, dizziness, and severe respiratory distress. Hackman is thought to have died about a week later of heart disease complications from Alzheimer’s.
One of the couple’s three dogs was also discovered dead in a box beside Arakawa’s body, while the other two were still alive. A state veterinary lab determined that the dog died from dehydration and malnutrition.