Police say it is a “reasonable assumption” that actor Gene Hackman died when his pacemaker had its “last event” on 17 February.
Hackman and his wife Betsy Arakawa were found dead in separate rooms of their home in a gated community in Santa Fe, New Mexico, on Wednesday. One of the couple’s three pet dogs was also found dead near Arakawa.
Their deaths were announced yesterday and an official later said the condition of the bodies indicated the pair had been dead for “several days, possibly even up to a couple of weeks”.
Hackman, a former Marine, appeared in more than 80 films and won two Oscars during his decades-spanning career. He met his wife, a concert pianist, in the mid-1980s and the pair married in 1991.
In an update on Friday, Santa Fe County Sheriff Adan Mendoza said: “The last event [of his pacemaker] was recorded on 17 February 2025.
“According to the pathologist, I think that is a very good assumption, that was his last day of life.”
Mr Mendoza added there were “no apparent signs of foul play” in the deaths of the couple following an autopsy which showed “no external trauma”.
He also confirmed both bodies tested negative for carbon monoxide.
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