Entertainment
Gene Hackman’s Final Autopsy Released Two Months After Actor’s Death
An official cause of death has been released for Oscar-winning actor Gene Hackman and his wife, Betsy Arakawa, a little over two months after they were both found dead inside their home in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
According to the Office of the Medical Investigator in New Mexico, Hackman had a “history of congestive heart failure” in addition to “severe chronic hypertensive changes, kidneys.”
The “French Connection” actor had a “bi-ventricular pacemaker” placed in April 2019, documents reviewed by Fox News state. “Neurodegenerative features consistent with Alzheimer’s Disease,” were also noted in the autopsy.
“Autopsy showed severe atherosclerotic and hypertensive cardiovascular disease, with placement of coronary artery stents and a bypass graft, as well as a previous aortic valve replacement,” the documents stated.
“Remote myocardial infarctions were present involving the left ventricular free wall and the septum, which were significantly large. Examination of the brain showed microscopic findings of advanced stage Alzheimer’s disease.”
Hackman tested negative for hantavirus, which was determined to be the cause of death for Arakawa. “Testing for carbon monoxide was less than 5% saturation, in keeping with a normal range,” the medical examiner noted.
A toxicology report found trace amounts of acetone in Hackman’s system when he died. The solvent used for chemicals is “also a product of diabetic- and fasting-induced ketoacidosis as well as a metabolite following isopropanol ingestion,” the documents stated.
Hackman’s toxicology test showed acetone levels at 5.3 mg/dl, where as reported normal endogenous acetone levels in blood are up to 0.3 mg/dL, Fox News reported. The findings are consistent with a lengthy period of fasting.
GENE HACKMAN & wife at the Golden Globe Awards at the Beverly Hills Hilton Hotel. 19JAN2003. Paul Smith / Featureflash
Hackman and Arakawa’s bodies were found on February 26 by maintenance workers, one of whom Jesse Kesler, had worked as a contractor for the couple for more than a decade.
According to a search warrant affidavit, Arakwa was found decomposed with bloating on her face and mummification on her hands and feet. Hackman’s body was found to display the same signs of decomposition.
Detectives initially described the couple’s deaths as “suspicious enough in nature to require a thorough search and investigation,” according to a search warrant affidavit obtained by Fox News.
Investigators determined that there were no visible signs of trauma on either Hackman or Arakawa, while New Mexico officials promptly launched a criminal investigation into their deaths.
Investigators further determined that Arakawa had searched for symptoms of the flu and COVID-19 in the days before she died through a search of her computer. In a February 11 email sent to her massage therapist, Arakawa stated that Hackman had taken a COVID test after experiencing “flu/cold-like symptoms.”
“This data suggests that Betsy was actively researching medical conditions related to COVID-19 and flu-like symptoms in the days leading up to her death,” the report stated.
Arakawa died from hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, which is transmitted from animals to humans and is commonly found in rodents, the New Mexico Department of Health confirmed.
Hantavirus is characterized by “flu-like symptoms consisting of fever, muscle aches, cough, sometimes vomiting and diarrhea that can progress to shortness of breath and cardiac or heart failure and lung failure,” Chief Medical Investigator Dr. Heather Jarrell explained during a news conference last month.
Hackman was 95 at the time of his death, while Arakawa was 63.
