Gene Hackman’s house was ‘breeding ground’ for rodent-borne hantavirus, with evidence of rat infestation
15 April 2025, 22:13
A report has found that Hackman’s house was surrounded by rat nests and droppings, after it was revealed his wife Betsy Arakawa died from the rodent-borne hantavirus.
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Hackman, 95, and his wife Betsy Arakawa, 65, were found dead, along with one of their dogs, at their home in Santa Fe, New Mexico in March.
Ms Arakawa died, most likely on February 11, after becoming infected with a rare flu-like disease called Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome.
Hackman likely died later on February 18 of severe heart disease and showed evidence of advanced Alzheimer's disease.
The report by the New Mexico department of public health found that the property’s outbuildings and garages were infested with rodents.
The main residence building apparently did not show evidence of a rodent infestation.
Records first reported by CNN show that a ‘homesite environmental assessment’ took place at the property on 5 March – a week after the actor and his wife’s bodies were found.
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The assessment showed that rodent faeces, a live rodent, a dead rodent and a rodent nest were found in the outbuildings and garages of the property.
Another report revealed the devastating internet searches by Gene Hackman’s wife Betsy Arakawa, made just days before her death.
Authorities released a lengthy investigation report detailing some of the last emails and internet searches done by Gene Hackman's wife in the days before her death.
The investigation report has now shown that Arakawa had been scouring the internet for information on flu-like symptoms and breathing techniques before she died.
The disease she died of, hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, is a rare, rodent-borne disease that can lead to a range of symptoms that include flu-like illness, headaches, dizziness and severe respiratory distress, investigators have said.
The remains of Hackman, 95, and Ms Arakawa, 65, were found in their Santa Fe home on February 26, when maintenance and security workers showed up at the home and alerted police.
According to the report released on Tuesday, a review of the open bookmarks on Arakawa's computer on February 8 and the morning of February 12 indicated she was actively researching medical conditions related to Covid-19 and flu-like symptoms.
The searches included questions about whether Covid could cause dizziness or nosebleeds.
She also had mentioned in an email to her masseuse that Hackman had woken up on February 11 with flu or cold-like symptoms but that a Covid test was negative and she would have to reschedule her appointment for the next day "out of an abundance of caution".
Ms Arakawa's last search was the morning of February 12 for a health care provider in Santa Fe.
Investigators also reviewed a call history to the Hackmans' home phone along with voicemails and security footage from stores that Ms Arakawa had visited on February 11.
Authorities also are expected to release more redacted police body camera footage from inside the home as sheriff's deputies and investigators tried to piece together what had happened to the couple.
The written report describes them going through rooms of the home and finding nothing out of the ordinary and no signs of forced entry.
One of the couple's three dogs also was found dead in a crate in a bathroom closet near Arakawa, while two other dogs were found alive. A state veterinary lab tied the dog's death to dehydration and starvation.
An attorney for the estate, Kurt Sommer, argued during a hearing last month that the couple had taken great pains to stay out of the public light during their lifetimes and that the right to control the use of their names and likenesses should extend to their estate in death.
Estate representative Julia Peters also emphasised the possibly shocking nature of photographs and video in the investigation and the potential for their dissemination by media.
The Associated Press, CBS News and CBS Studios intervened in the matter, saying in court filings that they would not disseminate images of the couple's bodies and would blur images to obscure them from other records.
