A day after the news of actor Gene Hackman’s death broke across several media outlets, the outside of the Santa Fe County Sheriff's Department was packed with news crews as Santa Fe County Sheriff Adan Mendoza stepped up to provide the press with an update on the investigation into the deaths of Hackman, his wife Betsy Arakawa and one of their dogs.
Mendoza recounted the events of Feb. 26, when the bodies were discovered: at approximately 1:45 pm, the sheriff’s deputies were dispatched to 1425 Old Sunset Trail, Hackman’s home.
“An individual [who] arrived to perform maintenance on the residence became concerned after receiving no answer, and contacted neighborhood security to conduct a welfare check,” Mendoza said. “Security then checked on the residents and observed Mr. Hackman and Ms. Arakawa on the ground unresponsive through a window, and called 911. Deputies arrived and gained access to the residence where they observed Mrs. Arakawa deceased. They continued the search of their home and located Mr. Hackman in a separate area of the residence, also deceased.”
The deputies requested the City of Santa Fe Fire personnel and the New Mexico Gas Company to test for carbon monoxide or other foreign elements, which Mendoza clarified came back negative. At 9:30 pm Wednesday night, the search warrant was issued and executed on the residence.
Mendoza said the Santa Fe Animal Control Division worked with family members to ensure the safety of the two surviving dogs, and investigators “worked diligently throughout the night and morning” to process the scene for evidence.
In the early hours of the morning on Thursday, Hackman and Arakawa were transported to the office of the medical investigator. An autopsy was performed, with initial findings noting no external trauma to either individual. The manner and cause of death has yet to be determined, and Mendoza indicated they did not believe a fall caused either of the deaths, noting he believes the pathologist would have discovered head or brain injuries.
“The official results of the autopsy and toxicology reports are pending,” Mendoza said. “Just today, I spoke to Dr. [Heather] Jarrell, the pathologist from the New Mexico Office of the Medical Investigator [at 2 pm]. She advised that there were several tests that were submitted to be expedited.”
According to Mendoza, Jarrell said both individuals tested negative for carbon monoxide. When a reporter asked whether police suspected a fallen space heater found near Arakawa’s body could have anything to do with her death, he said right now there is “no indication that has anything to do with that.”
Additionally, an initial interrogation was conducted of Hackman’s pacemaker, which revealed that his last event was recorded on Feb. 17—nine days before being discovered.
“According to the pathologist, I think that is a very good assumption, that that was his last day of life,” Mendoza said when a reporter asked whether it can be assumed that Hackman died on Feb. 17.
Deputies collected and took into evidence two green cell phones, two bottles of medication, one bottle of over-the-counter Tylenol, medical records and a 2025 monthly planner calendar.
“We will look and try to gain access to the cell phones. We'll be analyzing cell phone data, phone calls, text messages, events, photos in the cell phones, to try to piece a timeline together,” Mendoza said, clarifying the police have not yet gained access to the phones. “We're doing a timeline from the time of death and the autopsy and the results, and we're going to start working our way backwards…and then hopefully make a determination of what may have happened to both the individuals.”
Mendoza said the police may have to reach out to other agencies to gain access to the phones.
“These are some other things that take a little bit of time,” Mendoza said.
According to a search warrant submitted by the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office, deputies spoke to two maintenance workers present, one of them being the man who had called 911, and determined there were no signs of forced entry, although the front door was ajar.
Deputies first found Arakawa’s body laying on the ground near a countertop inside the bathroom with what deputies suspect was a fallen space heater nearby, and an open prescription bottle was found on the countertop with pills scattered on the countertop, according to the same search warrant affidavit. Mendoza said he does not want to release the information of who the medication was prescribed to or what the medication was due to “HIPAA concerns.”
In the bathroom closet, deputies found the body of a German Shepherd, and Hackman’s body was found in the mudroom. Deputies suspect Hackman fell suddenly, because a cane and a pair of glasses were found on the floor near his body. Two healthy dogs were also found on the property, one found in the bathroom with Arakawa and the other found outside the residence.
Mendoza said there is no form of surveillance on the property the police currently know of to help them determine a timeline or cause of death.
“I respect Mr. Hackman and Ms. Arakawa’s regard for privacy,” Mendoza said. “I think everybody here understands that they were very private individuals and a very private family.”
Mendoza said one of the challenges of determining the timeline is due to the couple’s privacy—they currently are not aware of the last time anyone contacted Hackman or Arakawa before their deaths.
“I think the event of the pacemaker gives us an idea, but we're going to—again, sift through the cell phone records…go through the planner. We're contacting workers, maintenance workers, family members, security,” Mendoza said. “It's a secure subdivision. There's in-and-out that I believe is documented, so we're working with them to try to determine when the last contact was, and that'll help us put together their timeline.”
Mendoza said he does not currently know when the toxicology results or cause of death determination will come back from the Office of the Medical Investigator.
“I'm assuming that the pathologist will wait for the toxicology to come back, so that'll help her make her decision on what the cause is. It could be months—three months or longer,” Mendoza said.
