Gene Hackman, his wife Betsy Arakawa, and their dog were found dead after being deceased for some time. Initially suspected to be due to a gas leak, an investigation by the New Mexico Gas Company found no lethal hazards, only minor regulatory issues.
Authorities confirmed these were not the cause of death. Hackman, in poor health, died of heart disease and Alzheimer’s a week after his wife, who passed from hantavirus pulmonary syndrome. Given his condition, he may not have realized she had died.