There's been a new update regarding Gene Hackman and Betsy Arakawa following their tragic deaths.
Gene Hackman and his wife Betsy Arakawa were found dead at their Santa Fe home. Credit: Kevin Winter/Getty Images.
The couple, discovered on February 26 alongside one of their dogs, Zinna, had died days apart under very different circumstances.
According to investigators, 65-year-old Arakawa died first - on or around February 12 - from hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, a rare and severe respiratory disease.
Hackman, 95, reportedly passed away on February 17 or 18 from hypertensive atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, with Alzheimer’s disease listed as a significant contributing factor.
Zinna, their dog, is believed to have died from dehydration.
Gene Hackman was found dead aged 95. Credit: Robert Mora/Getty Images
TMZ has now heartbreakingly confirmed that the names of the late Hollywood icon and his wife remain on the Office of the Medical Investigator’s list of unclaimed decedents as of March 24.
Though officials note it’s not unusual for bodies to remain unclaimed a month after death, questions are swirling as to why no one from Hackman’s family has stepped forward.
The legendary actor had three children - Christopher, Leslie, and Elizabeth.
Despite previously admitting to a strained relationship with his kids, Hackman had reportedly grown closer to them in later years.
Notably, he left his Hollywood fortune to Arakawa, which sparked tension among fans and fueled speculation about family dynamics.
After their deaths, his daughters publicly mourned their father, making the lack of action regarding their parents' remains all the more puzzling. The delay could suggest ongoing funeral arrangements.
Gene Hackman and wife Betsy Arakawa. Credit: Donaldson Collection / Getty
Recently, a new twist emerged when newly released bodycam footage revealed that Arakawa may have been deeply unsettled in her final weeks.
A man named Christopher - Arakawa’s hairstylist - told Santa Fe County Sheriff’s deputies about two disturbing incidents involving a mysterious man, per Fox News.
“She mentioned to me that there was a man that had parked outside of their gate and followed them,” Christopher said in the footage.
“On two separate occasions. One occasion is when they went to White Rock. They went and had lunch there and the guy followed them from parked [outside of their gated community], followed them all the way to White Rock.”
New bodycam footage suggests the couple were approached twice by the same man back in December. Credit: Santa Fe County Sheriff's Office via Fox News
Arakawa reportedly expressed concern that their home security had failed to flag the man.
“She said, ‘Christopher, I’m surprised that security didn’t [know] how he got there… because when we left, I noticed that this car had followed us from the residence to White Rock,’” he recalled.
The man allegedly approached the couple with a folder of photos of Hackman and asked for autographs.
Arakawa confronted him directly: “She said… she approached him and said, ‘I told him he needed to have more respect,’” Christopher recounted.
But it didn’t end there. The same man reportedly followed them a second time and tried to gift them a bottle of wine - which they declined.
“I said, ‘Oh my gosh, Betsy, that’s crazy. You should not have approached this person. This makes me nervous.’ He knew what [they] drove. That’s the scary part,” Christopher told deputies.