The legend of American cinema was found dead with his wife, Betsy Arakawa last Wednesday. But this double death asks many questions to investigators, who consider “suspect” death.
The mystery continues to thicken. The death of Gene Hackman And his wife Betsy Arakawa is still considered “suspect” on the part of the investigators, who discovered the couple’s bodies at their home on February 26. The causes of death are still not known, and nothing highlights the criminal track, but several mysteries come to ask questions.
Gene Hackman and Betsy Arakawa were found on Wednesday around 1:45 p.m. by police, after a worried neighbor called to make sure everything was fine at home. The couple was found dead, just like one of their three dogs, whose body was found in a closet. The first observations reveal that the front door was open, but that there was no trace of break -in or obvious trace of a gas leak. The pacemaker of the 95 -year -old actor has stopped working since February 17: investigators think that it could be the death day, nine days before the discovery of the bodies.
According to the first medical examinations, the bodies have no external sign of physical trauma. It would also seem that Betsy Arakawa died the first, which raises new questions about the temporality and the reasons for the death of Gene Hackman. The search warrant reveals that the actor seems to have “suddenly fallen” in his kitchen, while his wife was found upstairs, in the bathroom, “pills dispersed on the counter”. According to the first medical examinations, carbon monoxide poisoning has been excluded and would not be involved: there is also no sign of gas leak.
Gene Hackman’s girls question
Already discreet in the media, the couple would also have isolated in recent months in the private sphere. Betsy Arakawa would have stopped contacting his mother, aged and senile, for several months, while neighbors and relatives testify to the insulation of the couple. In addition, the behavior of Gene Hackman’s girls question when they were photographed at the end of a restaurant, smiling, the day after the announcement of the death of their father and his wife. Note, moreover, that the elder, Elizabeth, had indicated to TMZ that the family leaned for the thesis of carbon monoxide poisoning, before it was excluded by medical examinations.
The mystery of the owner of the house
Another mystery that raises questions in this case: the identity of the owner of the house where Gene Hackman and his wife lived. The couple acquired the house in 1990, but it was recorded on behalf of Edgar F. Gross, former lawyer of the actor who died in 2016 who would have served as an intermediary during the acquisition of the property. The question remains why the actor does not appear on official documents. Is it a montage for tax reasons, or is a financial agreement at the heart of the case?
An actor doubly ossarized
Gene Hackman received two Oscars during her career, a first for her role in the film French Connection by William Friedkin, a second for Ruthless of Clint Eastwood. In total, he was appointed for the prestigious award five times during his career: for Bonnie and Clyde in 1967, I never blood for my father in 1970, or in Mississippi Burning In 1988, for which he was appointed to the Oscars. We have also seen it in other major films, such as The adventure of Poseidon In 1972, Secret conversation In 1974, Superman in 1978 or more recently State enemy in 1998 and The Tenenbaum family In 2001. He ended his acting career in 2004, and was honored during the 97th Oscar ceremony on March 2, 2025.