The circumstances surrounding the deaths of legendary actor Gene Hackman and his wife Betsy Arakawa have taken an unexpected turn after a Santa Fe doctor claimed that Arakawa contacted his clinic a day after police say she had already passed away.
Dr. Josiah Child, who operates Cloudberry Health in New Mexico, told the Daily Mail that the 65-year-old former classical pianist called his office on February 12, despite the medical examiner concluding she had died on February 11.
“Mrs. Hackman didn’t die on February 11 because she called my clinic on February 12,” Child stated.
He added that weeks before her passing, Arakawa had inquired about scheduling an echocardiogram for her husband.
Conflicting Accounts
Child insisted that Arakawa contacted his clinic on February 12 to schedule an appointment for herself, unrelated to respiratory issues.
“She was not my patient, but she was referred to Cloudberry by someone who was,” he explained.
However, two days before the scheduled visit, she canceled, citing that her husband, the two-time Oscar winner, was feeling unwell.
“Then, on the morning of February 12, she called back and spoke with one of our doctors, who scheduled her for an appointment that afternoon,” Child continued.
“She never showed up. She didn’t report any respiratory distress, and the appointment wasn’t related to hantavirus. We tried calling her multiple times but got no response.”
Medical Examiner’s Conclusion Disputed
Child’s account directly contradicts the official report from Chief Medical Investigator Dr. Heather Jarrell, who determined that Arakawa died on or around February 11.
- Arakawa exchanged emails on the morning of February 11 before heading to a grocery store, pharmacy, and pet store.
- She returned home around 5:15 p.m., as indicated by her garage clicker data.
- The medical examiner concluded it was “reasonable” to assume she passed away first, given that February 11 was the last confirmed record of her being alive.
According to the Santa Fe medical examiner’s report:
- Arakawa died of hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, a rare respiratory disease spread by rodents.
- Hackman succumbed to hypertensive atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, with Alzheimer’s disease as a contributing factor.
- His pacemaker recorded activity until February 18, when it noted an abnormal heart rhythm (atrial fibrillation).
- A post-mortem revealed no food in his stomach.
- One of their three dogs, which was recovering from surgery in a crate, died of starvation and dehydration, according to a state necropsy report.
With these contradicting timelines and medical findings, questions continue to loom over the true sequence of events leading to the couple’s deaths.
