SANTA FE COUNTY, NEW MEXICO (KRQE) — Newly-released body camera footage shows the confusion and questions investigators had after actor Gene Hackman and his wife Betsy Arakawa were found dead in their home.
The investigation started in late February after no one had seen the couple for days. Some of the first deputies to arrive at the home described a confusing scene. “Two totally separate areas. I know, it’s strange. One dead dog,” deputies can be heard in body camera footage.
It was a maintenance worker who called 911 to the home of actor Gene Hackman and his wife, concert pianist Betsy Arakawa. The reclusive couple had lived in Santa Fe since the late 1980s. They were found dead on February 26, along with one of their dogs, inside different rooms of their Hyde Park area home northeast of Santa Fe.
New footage shows inside Gene Hackman, Betsy Arakawa’s home
The newly-released body camera footage shows deputies finding 65-year-old Arakawa dead in a bathroom. 95-year-old Hackman was found dead near the kitchen. Medical investigators believe the couple died about a week apart, with Arakawa dying of Hantavirus first, while Hackman died of heart disease with Alzheimer’s as a contributing factor, days later.
Deputies in the footage can be heard talking about a potential gas leak. “It smells like gas. You smell gas? Yeah, something. If there was a gas leak and they both went down, that doesn’t make sense why those would be off,” Santa Fe County Sheriff’s deputies can be heard saying.
Actor Gene Hackman arrives with his wife, Betsy Arakawa, for the 60th Annual Golden Globe Awards in Beverly Hills, Calif., Jan. 19, 2003. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill, File) 
FILE – Actor Gene Hackman with wife Betsy Arakawa in June 1993. (AP Photo, File) 
LOS ANGELES – 1986: Actor Gene Hackman and wife Betsy Arakawa pose for a portrait in 1986 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Donaldson Collection/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images) 
This undated photo provided by Sherry Gaber shows Betsy Arakawa with her dogs Zinna, left, and Bear, in Santa Fe, N.M. (Sherry Gaber via AP) 
FILE – Gene Hackman, right, and long-time friend Daniel Lenihan, discuss their new book, “Wake of the Perdido Star,” on Nov. 19, 1999, in Cloudclift Bakery, the cafe where they first dreamed up their adventure story, in Santa Fe, N.M. (AP Photo/Sarah Martone, File) 
FILE – Actor Gene Hackman gives fictional Hickory High basketball players instructions during filming of the final game of the movie “Hoosiers” at Hinkle Fieldhouse on the Butler University campus, Friday, Dec. 6, 1985 in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Tom Strickland, File) 
FILE – Actor Gene Hackman reacts during an interview on March 24, 1972. (AP Photo/George Brich, File) 
Actors (L-R) Raquel Welch, Gene Hackman and Cloris Leachman (holding her Best Supporting Actress Oscar) at the 44th Academy Awards in Hollywood, CA, April 17th 1972. (Photo by Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty Images)
New Mexico Gas later determined there was only one small gas leak, but not enough to be a significant factor. In its investigation, the sheriff’s office also collected video showing the last time Arakawa was seen alive in public, shopping at a store.
The first round of bodycam footage was released at the end of March. However, this footage only showed the outside of the home. At the time, it was unclear if footage from inside the home would be released. The footage that was released first also suggested that deputies prioritized the couple’s privacy very early in the investigation.
Rodent droppings, dead rodents found on Gene Hackman’s property: Report
A newly released report from the State Department of Health indicates inspectors found evidence of rodent droppings and dead rodents in multiple garages and sheds around the property.
On March 5, staff from the New Mexico Department of Health conducted the risk assessment testing at the Hackman property. Part of the reason for this was to make sure investigators, first responders and family members who still came to the Santa Fe Summit home were safe from contracting hantavirus.
The report stated that the primary residence had no signs of rodents and was clean, CNN said. CNN also reported rodent droppings were found in three of the detached garages, three sheds and two casitas during the homesite environmental assessment.
Officials reportedly found a live rodent, a dead rodent and a rodent’s nest in the three garages. The report also stated that rodents could access eight other buildings on Hackman’s property, and were seen in two vehicles.