The actor’s wife, Betsy Arakawa, died of a respiratory illness linked to rodents, New Mexico officials said. Mr. Hackman had Alzheimer’s, wh
So the conclusion to this story is nothing salacious or scandalous.
Gene Hackman had severe Alzheimer’s. His wife, Betsy, was likely his caretaker.
She died on February 11.
On her last day, she was well enough to run errands—she grabbed a few things at the grocery store. Whether or not she knew she was sick, we don’t know.
The disease that killed her is found in common mice in New Mexico, and once contracted, there’s a 40% fatality rate. There were no rodents in the home, but there was evidence elsewhere. She likely caught it while trying to clean up.
The Hantavirus presents as the flu, so she might have just thought she was coming down with something.
February 11 is the last anyone sees or hears from her.
Gene Hackman dies on February 18. A full week after Betsy died on the bathroom floor.
They found her body amongst a bunch of scattered pills, none of which contribute to her death. Maybe she was looking to treat her symptoms when she stopped being able to breathe.
One of their German Shepherds was also found dead. We don’t know why, but it might have been 2 weeks since his animals were last fed. Depending on what pills were on the floor, maybe it was accidental poisoning. Even something as common as Tylenol is fatal in dogs.
On February 26, their bodies are found by a security guard. Security was only alerted when a maintenance worker didn’t get a response when he showed up.
Gene’s autopsy showed that he wasn’t dehydrated, but his stomach is empty. He didn’t contact anyone else.
Gene spent the last week of his life alone in an unrecognizable world. Losing Betsy was like losing the only tether he had with reality. Each time he’d walk to the bathroom, he would discover her body. He would realize she was gone; it was a fleeting heartbreak that was wiped from his memory before he could even call for help.
And again, and again, until heart disease (or lack of its treatment) stops the cycle.
There’s no murder. There’s no scandal. No laws were broken. They were a normal couple. They were Seniors left alone to their private, secluded lives.
The rats killed them. Bad luck killed them. Love killed them.
