Distressing footage was made public by New Mexico police, showing the final hours of Gene Hackman's wife Betsy Arakawa, who died in February last year. Betsy, 65, succumbed to a rare hantavirus and was discovered deceased alongside her Hollywood legend husband, 95, who is believed to have passed away a week afterwards from heart disease complications and Alzheimer's.
Their dog, Zinna, was also discovered dead and "mummified" at the property from dehydration and starvation, whilst two other family pets survived. Footage has now emerged of Betsy's last hours on February 11, when she visited shops in Santa Fe. CCTV recordings captured her dressed in blue jeans and a dark coat, along with a face mask, as she made her way to a Sprouts Grocery Market self-checkout to purchase essentials at approximately 4pm that day.
Subsequently, she travelled to Shine Pet Food to collect some supplies for her dogs. Betsy was alone and was capable of entering and leaving both establishments without any apparent impact on her wellbeing.
This follows the release of police bodycam footage by Santa Fe authorities which revealed officers uncovering the harrowing condition of the Hackman residence, with one dog remaining on watch over Betsy's body.
Gene's cause of death was established as hypertensive atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, with Alzheimer's recorded as a contributing factor. Arakawa, meanwhile, died from hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, a rodent-borne disease.
Police photographs from the scene also revealed handwritten messages passed between Gene and Betsy, with the star describing his wife as "lovely girl" and concluding with: "Love, G".
One note in particular stated: "Good morning. Happy several days after your birthday. Sorry still about the dinner and having to ask for your help, although it was appreciated. Love you and the guys, G."
A further message saw Gene discuss his continuing medical care, writing: "Ho, ho, I am off to see the wizard, the wiz of achie, pokie. She stabs me here and stabs me there, she stabs me almost everywhere (almost). But I survive because after I am still alive. (But sometimes just barely)."
