died of heart disease likely a week after his wife died of hantavirus but may not have realized she was dead in their New Mexico home because he showed severe signs of Alzheimer's disease, authorities said Friday.
, 95, and his wife, , 65, were found dead Feb. 26. Authorities previously said they did not suspect foul play, and immediate tests for .
What we know about the deaths
Both were ruled to be from natural causes, chief medical examiner Dr. Heather Jarrell said. Hackman's death was tied to heart disease with Alzheimer鈥檚 disease contributing. Authorities linked Arakawa's death to hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, a rare but potentially fatal disease spread by the droppings of infected rodents.
The last known communication and activity by Arakawa was on Feb. 11, when she visited a grocery store, pharmacy, pet food store and entered a gated community in Santa Fe where the couple lived, Santa Fe County Sheriff Adan Mendoza said. Hackman鈥檚 pacemaker last showed signs of activity a week later, with an abnormal heart rhythm Feb. 18 鈥� the day he likely died, Jarrell said.
While there's no reliable way to know for sure when each died, all signs point to their deaths coming a week apart, Jarrell said.
Hackman's body was found in the home鈥檚 entryway, and Arakawa's body was found in a bathroom. Thyroid medication pills prescribed to Arakawa were found nearby and weren鈥檛 listed as contributing to her death, Jarrell said.
Investigators earlier retrieved personal items from the home, including a monthly planner and two cellphones. One of the couple鈥檚 three dogs was found dead in a crate near Arakawa. Authorities initially .
The sheriff's office considers the investigation still open until it finishes checking into cellphone data and receives results from a planned necropsy of the dog.
What is hantavirus?
The virus typically is reported in spring and summer, often when people are in homes, sheds or poorly ventilated areas. It can cause a severe, sometimes deadly lung infection called hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
This is the first confirmed case of hantavirus in New Mexico this year. Hantavirus does not spread between people.
Initial symptoms can include fatigue, fever and muscle aches. As the disease progresses, people can experience coughing, shortness of breath or tightness in the chest as the lungs fill with fluid, according to the CDC. About a third of people who develop respiratory symptoms can die, the agency said.
How Hackman made his name
Hackman appeared in a broad dating back to 1961, when he debuted in 鈥淢ad Dog Coll." His roles included playing the arch nemesis Lex Luthor in the 鈥淪uperman鈥� movies and a coach finding redemption in the
He was a five-time Oscar nominee who won best actor in a leading role for 鈥淭he French Connection鈥� in 1972 and best actor in a supporting role for 鈥淯nforgiven鈥� two decades later. He retired in the early 2000s.
Who was Arakawa?
was born in Hawaii in December 1959 and grew up in Honolulu. She studied piano and, as an 11-year-old sixth grader, performed in youth concerts in front of thousands of students at the Honolulu International Center Concert Hall, the Honolulu Star-Bulletin reported in 1971.
She attended the University of Southern California and was a cheerleader for the Aztecs, a professional soccer team in the North American Soccer League. She also worked as a production assistant on the television game show 鈥淐ard Sharks,鈥� the Honolulu Star-Advertiser reported in 1981.
She met Hackman while working part-time at a California gym in the mid-1980s. They soon moved in together and relocated to Santa Fe by the end of the decade.
Arakawa was vice president of Pandora鈥檚, a home decor and furnishing store in Santa Fe, according to .
Where were Hackman and his wife living?
Their Pueblo revival home, a style typical in the area, sits on a hill in a gated community with views of the Rocky Mountains far from Hollywood. The area is known as a preferred location among artists and a retreat for celebrities.
The home was featured in a 1990 article by . The four-bedroom, 8,700-square-foot (808-square-meter) structure on 6 acres (2.4 hectares) had an estimated market value of a little over $4 million, according to Santa Fe County property tax records.
Hackman could be spotted around the historic state capital, but he disappeared largely from the public eye in his later years. His hobbies included painting, deep-sea diving and, later in life, writing novels.
The Associated Press
