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Gene Hackman died from hypertensive and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, with advanced Alzheimer’s disease listed as a significant contributing factor. His wife, Betsy Arakawa—referred to by her legal name, Betsy Hackman, in New Mexico medical-examiner records—died separately from hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, a severe rodent-associated respiratory illness. Both deaths were ruled natural; carbon-monoxide poisoning, external trauma and a criminal cause were not supported by the official findings.
The official causes of death
| Person | Cause of death | Manner of death |
|---|---|---|
| Gene Hackman | Hypertensive and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, with Alzheimer’s disease as a significant contributory factor | Natural |
| Betsy Arakawa-Hackman | Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome | Natural |
The findings describe two separate medical deaths, not one shared poisoning, infection or confirmed incident. Hackman tested negative for hantavirus, and investigators attributed his death to severe long-standing cardiovascular disease. Arakawa’s laboratory testing was positive for hantavirus, and her lung findings were consistent with hantavirus pulmonary syndrome. The New Mexico medical examiner announced the causes on March 7, 2025, after the couple’s bodies were discovered at their Santa Fe-area home. The medical-examiner briefing reported that both deaths were natural.
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What Gene Hackman died from
The official wording for Hackman’s primary cause was hypertensive and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease. In plain language, years of high blood pressure and artery disease had caused extensive damage to his heart and related organs.
- Hypertensive disease refers to damage associated with chronic high blood pressure. The final autopsy documented severe chronic hypertensive changes in his kidneys as well as serious cardiovascular disease.
- Atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease involves the buildup and hardening of plaque in the arteries. The autopsy showed advanced disease and evidence of previous heart attacks.
- Alzheimer’s disease was identified as a significant contributory factor. Microscopic examination of his brain showed changes consistent with advanced Alzheimer’s disease, but Alzheimer’s was not listed as the primary cause.
The autopsy also documented a history of congestive heart failure, coronary stents, a bypass graft, an earlier aortic-valve replacement and a biventricular pacemaker implanted in April 2019. These details help explain the seriousness and duration of his heart disease. Some early reports described the cause as heart failure, but the Associated Press later corrected that wording: the official finding was cardiovascular disease, not simply heart failure.
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That distinction matters. Heart failure was part of Hackman’s medical history, but the formal cause-of-death finding was the broader combination of hypertensive and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease.
When did Hackman die?
Investigators used data from his pacemaker to estimate that Hackman died on or around February 18, 2025. The device recorded cardiac activity on February 17 and an abnormal atrial-fibrillation rhythm on February 18. Those records made February 18 the likely date of death, although a pacemaker record is not the same thing as a witnessed time of death. The released investigative timeline is summarized by AP.
What Betsy Arakawa died from
Arakawa died from hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, commonly abbreviated HPS. The disease can cause a rapid and severe breakdown of lung function as fluid accumulates in and around the lungs.
The final findings reportedly included:
- Heavy, congested lungs.
- Fluid accumulation in her chest.
- Microscopic findings consistent with hantavirus pulmonary syndrome.
- Positive laboratory testing for hantavirus.
- Negative tests for COVID-19 and influenza.
- Carbon-monoxide levels within the normal range.
- No external or internal trauma.
- Negative testing for alcohol and intoxicating drugs; caffeine was detected.
Thyroid medication found at the property was reportedly being taken as prescribed and was not considered a contributing cause. The pills found near Arakawa therefore did not establish an overdose. AP’s report on the final autopsy records details the toxicology and lung findings.
Arakawa was 65. She is widely known as Betsy Arakawa, although New Mexico medical-examiner records used the legal name Betsy Hackman. The state health department identified the case as New Mexico’s first reported hantavirus case of 2025. The New Mexico Department of Health announcement confirms the state’s public-health finding.
What hantavirus pulmonary syndrome means
In the United States, HPS is generally acquired from infected rodents. A person can be exposed to virus in rodent urine, droppings, saliva or nesting material, especially when contaminated material is disturbed and particles become airborne. Exposure can also occur through contact with contaminated surfaces or materials.
Early symptoms may resemble an ordinary viral illness. They can include fever, fatigue, muscle aches, headache, dizziness and sometimes nausea, vomiting or other gastrointestinal symptoms. The illness can then progress to coughing, shortness of breath and fluid buildup in the lungs. Once the pulmonary phase begins, deterioration may be rapid. The CDC’s clinical overview describes the progression and the importance of considering rodent exposure in a patient with sudden respiratory illness.
There is no public evidence that Arakawa transmitted hantavirus to Hackman. The hantaviruses that cause HPS in the United States are not known to spread person-to-person. The CDC identifies Andes virus in South America as the hantavirus associated with person-to-person transmission; that is a different epidemiological situation from the typical U.S. HPS cases. Hackman also tested negative for hantavirus, and his cause of death was cardiovascular disease. The CDC’s hantavirus overview explains the distinction.
Was a rodent source found at the property?
Yes. An environmental assessment conducted by the New Mexico Department of Health on March 5, 2025, found evidence of rodents, droppings and nests in several detached structures and garages on the property. Reports described signs across eight outbuildings, including a live rodent, a dead rodent and rodent nests.
But the evidence needs to be described precisely. The main residence was reported as clean, and the assessed risk inside the main house was considered low. The strongest evidence of rodent activity was in outbuildings, garages and related structures—not a documented heavy infestation throughout the living area. Reporting on the environmental assessment describes those findings.
The property therefore contained plausible rodent-exposure hazards, but public records do not establish the precise place or moment when Arakawa contracted hantavirus. Investigators did not publicly identify a particular mouse, nest, garage or object as the definitive source.
That distinction is important for anyone cleaning a property with rodent evidence. The CDC advises against sweeping or vacuuming dry rodent waste, because doing so can send contaminated particles into the air. Areas should be approached with appropriate disinfection and protective measures. The CDC’s prevention guidance outlines the recommended precautions.
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1Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute2Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problems3Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesWhy were the deaths initially considered suspicious?
The scene was unusual enough that investigators initially treated it as potentially suspicious and sought authorization for a thorough search. That description referred to the circumstances of the discovery—not to a final finding that a crime had occurred.
The couple were found at their home on February 26, 2025, after a maintenance worker reportedly could not get inside and a security worker saw bodies through the property. Hackman was found in an entryway or mudroom. Arakawa was found on her side in a bathroom near a space heater. One of the couple’s dogs was found dead in a crate or closet area, while another dog was alive. The front door was reportedly unsecured, and prescription pills were scattered near Arakawa.
Those details created legitimate investigative questions, particularly because the deaths were not discovered for days. However, there were no obvious signs of violence, and the autopsies found no external trauma. The medical examiner ultimately classified both deaths as natural. AP’s account of the initial discovery explains why authorities investigated the scene so carefully.
In medical-examiner terminology, the cause is the disease or injury that led to death, while the manner describes the broad category—such as natural, accidental, suicide, homicide or undetermined. Here, the causes were cardiovascular disease for Hackman and HPS for Arakawa, and the manner for both was natural. That is different from saying that every detail of the couple’s final days is known.
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Was carbon monoxide poisoning ruled out?
Yes. Initial testing found carbon-monoxide levels within normal limits, and the New Mexico Gas Company reported no significant gas-leak findings at the home. Carbon monoxide was therefore investigated and ruled out as the explanation for the couple’s deaths. ABC News reported the carbon-monoxide and gas-company findings.
This conclusion should not be overstated. The gas investigation addressed carbon monoxide and significant gas leaks; it did not prove that every conceivable environmental hazard was absent. The final medical findings, however, did not support carbon-monoxide poisoning.
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Did Hackman know that Arakawa had died?
The medical examiner said it was quite possible that Hackman did not realize his wife had died. That was an informed medical possibility, not a fact that investigators could establish with certainty.
Several pieces of evidence shaped that assessment:
- Hackman appears to have survived Arakawa by roughly a week.
- His advanced Alzheimer’s disease could have substantially impaired his awareness and ability to respond to what was happening around him.
- His stomach reportedly contained no food.
- Acetone in his toxicology was reported at a level consistent with prolonged fasting.
- He did not show evidence of dehydration at the time of examination.
The empty stomach and acetone findings help describe Hackman’s final days and suggest that he may not have been eating normally. They do not mean that starvation was his official cause of death. The final cause remained hypertensive and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, with Alzheimer’s disease as a significant contributory factor. The medical examiner’s comments and the reported fasting evidence should be read as context, not as a replacement for the formal cause.
What happened in the couple’s final days?
The public records provide a partial timeline, but not a complete account of symptoms or the exact moment of either death.
- February 9: Arakawa picked up one of the dogs after a veterinary procedure. This is relevant to the later discovery of the animal but does not establish either human cause of death.
- February 11: Arakawa carried out documented errands and was last publicly known to have returned to the gated community. Investigators initially estimated that she died on this date.
- February 12: Later records showed multiple calls to Cloudberry Health or another concierge medical service. This activity means February 11 cannot be presented as an absolutely established death date.
- February 17–18: Hackman’s pacemaker recorded cardiac activity and then an abnormal atrial-fibrillation rhythm. Investigators treated February 18 as his likely date of death.
- February 26: Maintenance and security workers discovered the bodies at the home.
- February 27: Autopsies were performed. The initial examinations found no external trauma, while laboratory and microscopic testing supplied the final diagnoses.
- March 5: The environmental assessment documented rodent evidence in outbuildings and garages.
- March 7: New Mexico officials announced the causes of death and ruled both deaths natural.
- April 2025: Final autopsy and investigative records were released publicly in stages, adding details about Hackman’s heart disease, Alzheimer’s disease, fasting and Arakawa’s hantavirus findings.
Arakawa’s online activity also helps explain why her exact death date remains uncertain. Records showed searches involving COVID-19, flu-like symptoms and breathing-related information from approximately February 8 through the morning of February 12. She emailed a massage therapist that Hackman had awakened with cold- or flu-like symptoms and that she needed to reschedule. She also contacted a concierge medical service on February 12 and missed a later return call or appointment. These records may indicate that she was concerned about illness, but they do not prove that she recognized the illness as hantavirus or establish a precise symptom-by-symptom progression. The released-records reporting from AP provides the relevant details.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What remains uncertain
The official causes are clear, but some surrounding questions cannot be answered with the same precision:
- Arakawa’s exact time of death: February 11 was the initial estimate based on her last known activities, but calls recorded on February 12 show that she was active at least later than the original estimate. The careful description is that she died around February 11–12, or after February 11.
- The exact source of hantavirus: Rodent activity on the property created a plausible exposure pathway, but public records do not identify the exact contaminated material or location.
- Hackman’s awareness: It was quite possible that advanced Alzheimer’s disease prevented him from understanding that Arakawa had died, but this cannot be stated as certain.
- The dog’s death: The discovery of a dead dog contributed to the unusual scene, but the couple’s medical findings do not establish the animal’s cause of death. It should not be described as a hantavirus death without a separate authoritative veterinary finding.
These uncertainties do not change the central conclusion. The medical evidence supports two natural deaths from different causes: Hackman’s advanced cardiovascular disease and Arakawa’s hantavirus pulmonary syndrome.
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The bottom line
Gene Hackman did not die from hantavirus, carbon monoxide or Alzheimer’s disease alone. His official cause was hypertensive and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, with advanced Alzheimer’s disease contributing. Betsy Arakawa died from hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, most likely acquired through contact with infected rodent material, although the precise exposure source was not established publicly.
Hackman likely died about a week after Arakawa, based on his pacemaker data. Both deaths were ruled natural, and the investigation found no evidence that the couple died from a shared contagious illness, carbon-monoxide poisoning or an established criminal act.
Further records
Redacted sheriff’s-investigation records were released under court direction in April 2025. Santa Fe County’s official notice describes that records release and the county’s public statement.
Frequently Asked Questions
Did Gene Hackman and Betsy Arakawa die from the same illness?
No. Hackman died from hypertensive and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, with Alzheimer’s disease contributing. Arakawa died from hantavirus pulmonary syndrome. Hackman tested negative for hantavirus, and U.S. hantaviruses that cause HPS are not generally spread from person to person.
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Was carbon-monoxide poisoning the cause of death?
No. Carbon-monoxide levels were within normal limits, and the New Mexico Gas Company reported no significant gas-leak findings. The final findings did not support carbon-monoxide poisoning.
Did Gene Hackman starve after his wife died?
Investigators found no food in his stomach and acetone consistent with prolonged fasting, which may describe his final days. However, starvation was not listed as his cause of death; the official cause was severe cardiovascular disease.
When did Betsy Arakawa die?
Her death was initially estimated as February 11, 2025, based on her last known activities. Later records showed calls to a medical service on February 12, so the precise date is uncertain; it is safest to say she died around February 11–12 or after February 11.
The Bottom Line
Gene Hackman and Betsy Arakawa died from separate natural causes. Hackman’s death was attributed to severe hypertensive and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, with advanced Alzheimer’s disease contributing. Arakawa died from hantavirus pulmonary syndrome. Carbon monoxide was ruled out, Hackman tested negative for hantavirus, and the rodent evidence at the property does not establish the precise source of Arakawa’s infection.
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