The New Mexico sheriff said Friday that Oscar winner Jean Hackman and his wife may have died for several weeks, and while the pills found at the scene are of concern, there are contradictory reports of the incident.
Hackman, 95, and his wife, Betsie Arakawa, 65, were apparently dead in the weeks that investigators found the bodies while searching the couple’s Santa Fe home on Wednesday, Santa Fe County Sheriff Adan Mendoza said.
Hackman and his wife died at their Santa Fe home at the same time, or if they passed before the other, the sheriff told the outlet: I think it’s pretty close. ”
“You know, there’s no indication that someone is moving around the house or doing something different, so it’s very difficult to tell whether both of them were passing by at the same time or how close they got there,” Mendonza said. “We are trying to put that information together. Obviously, with the support of the medical investigator’s office, the autopsy report will be key to this investigation.”
Investigators are also trying to grasp the last time everyone sees or speaks, Mendoza added.
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“It’s very difficult to put together a timeline with the help of a medical investigator’s office,” he said, adding that classic pianists Hackman and Arakawa are “very personal individuals and private families.”
According to the search warrant affidavit, one of Hackman and Arakawa was found dead nearby. A maintenance worker called 911 after finding the body at the couple’s Santa Fe home. He reported that the front door of the house was open when he arrived to do his routine work, detectives wrote.
However, in a recording of the 911 call, workers said they could see him lying on the floor through the window, but he was unable to enter.
In an interview, Mendoza noted that there are conflicting explanations about the door, whether it is locked or unlocked, and said the investigation is ongoing. Some of their doors were unlocked and the back door was open so they could enter and leave two other dogs, he said, but suspects the front door was unlocked and closed.
Also, bottles of prescription drugs and pills scattered across a nearby countertop were open, officials said.
“Deputies observed a healthy dog running at the facility, another healthy dog near the deceased woman, a deceased dog laying from a bathroom 10-15 feet from the deceased woman, a heater being moved, a pill open, a pill scattered next to the woman, and a man being scattered.
The sheriff’s detective wrote that there were no obvious signs of a gas leak, but noted that people exposed to gas leaks or carbon monoxide may not show signs of poisoning. Neither had any obvious signs of blunt force trauma, the warrant added.
On Friday, Mendoza said the pill bottle was “very important” to investigators.
“That’s obviously very important evidence,” the sheriff said, “We’re looking specifically at other drugs that could have been in that place of residence. That’s a concern.”
Hackman was the five-time Oscar nominee who won Best Actor in the lead role in “French Connection” in 1972 and was the five-time Oscar nominee to win Best Actor in the supporting role in “Relentless” and “Relentless” 20 years later. He also appeared in many other highly acclaimed films, including “The Conversation,” “The Royal Tenenbaums,” and “Hoosiers.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
