The world was left in shock at the end of February when the bodies of the two-time Oscar-winning star Gene Hackman, 95, and his wife Betsy Arakawa, 65, were found in their Santa Fe mansion. Yesterday, we reported that officials found that the mansion was so infested with rats that it was a “breeding ground” for hantavirus, which ultimately killed Arakawa.
Now, shocking new body camera footage has emerged. Indeed, the footage shows just how messy the mansion was at the time Hackman and Arakawa passed away.
New Hackman Body Camera Footage Emerges
The Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Department released an 11-minute video from a police body cam on Tuesday. It shows deputies walking into the bathroom where Arakawa’s mummified remains were found after they make their way through the couple’s cluttered home. Five feet away from Arakawa’s body, one of her dogs can be seen standing guard over her body.
“Poor guy, he’s sad,” one of the deputies said of the dog.
While officials blurred out Arakawa’s body, her bathroom counter is littered with medication bottles and various toiletries, which appear to be strewn all over. Much of the rest of the home looks to be in complete disarray, with piles of clothes, documents, pictures and other items seen all over. The New York Post went so far as to describe the scene as being a “filthy hoarder home.”
Check out some photos from the home below.
Then check out a portion of the body camera footage below. The full version can be seen here.
Hackman Mansion Infested With Rats
This comes after it was revealed that Hackman and Arakawa’s $4 million mansion was infested with rats. This made it a “breeding ground” for hantavirus, the disease that ultimately killed Arakawa. While this was surprising to learn at the time, after watching the above body camera footage, perhaps the rat infestation isn’t so shocking after all.
This was all confirmed after the New Mexico Department of Public Health conducted a health assessment on the property one week after Hackman and Arakawa’s bodies were found on February 26. Officials concluded that dead rodents and their nests were found in “eight detached outbuildings” on the property.
Daily Mail reported that “the deadly hantavirus typically spreads through rodent urine and droppings that one may come into contact with when cleaning a basement or an attic.”
Officials found droppings in three garages, two casitas, and three sheds on the Santa Fe property. They also found a live rodent, dead rodent and a rodent nest in three additional garages on the property.
On top of that, two vehicles on the property were found to have evidence of rodents. Traps were found in various buildings as well, indicating that the Hackmans were aware of this issue.
Related: Gene Hackman, 95, Was ‘Murdered,’ Hollywood Legend Randy Quaid Alleges
Hackman And Arakawa Found Dead
The bodies of Arakawa and Hackman were found on February 26. Arakawa likely passed away on February 12, which was when she made her last phone call. By the time she was found dead, her remains had mummified.
Hackman was then in the mansion alone with her body for several days before succumbing to heart failure. It is believed that he died around February 18. The actor was also suffering from advanced Alzheimer’s disease. This means he may have been unaware or unable to understand that his wife had died.
Hackman and Arakawa had been married since 1991. They had no children together, but Hackman had three children from a previous marriage. Hackman retired from acting in 2004, and he and his wife were rarely seen in public in the final two decades of their lives. Instead, they seemed to prefer to live a reclusive life in their mansion.
After months of questions over Hackman and Arakawa’s deaths, it appears that the mystery has finally been solved. May they both rest in peace.
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