Betsy Machiko Arakawa was born on December 15, 1959, in Hawaii. She was a classically trained pianist who performed with the Honolulu Symphony Orchestra at age eleven and later attended the University of Southern California. She met Gene Hackman in the 1980s while working part-time at a Los Angeles fitness center — famously refusing to let him in when he forgot his membership card. After seven years together, they married on December 1, 1991.
In Santa Fe, where the couple had lived for decades, Arakawa was a well-regarded figure in her own right. In 2001, she co-founded Pandora's, a linens and home furnishings store she ran until her death. She and Hackman were also partners in a local Asian restaurant called Jinja. In later years, as Hackman's Alzheimer's disease worsened, Arakawa became his primary caregiver, managing his diet, social schedule, and daily wellbeing.
The sequence of events leading to the discovery of both deaths spans roughly two weeks, during which no one outside the home appears to have known anything was wrong.
Arakawa picks up one of the couple's three dogs from a veterinary hospital after a procedure. This is the dog later found dead in the home inside a crate.
Arakawa is last seen in public. She visits a farmer's market, CVS Pharmacy, and a pet food store, returning to her gated community at 5:15 p.m. That same day she emails her massage therapist noting that Gene had taken a COVID test after experiencing "flu/cold-like symptoms." Investigators later found she had searched for COVID and flu symptoms online multiple times in the days prior.
Arakawa calls a physician at a private Santa Fe health clinic and schedules an appointment for that afternoon. She does not show up. Investigators believe she died at home in the bathroom sometime that day from hantavirus pulmonary syndrome. She was 65 years old.
Gene Hackman's pacemaker records its last activity on February 17, leading authorities to conclude he died on approximately that date — roughly one week after his wife. He was 95. His cause of death was determined to be hypertensive and atherosclerotic cardiac disease, with Alzheimer's disease as a significant contributing factor. Officials noted it was "quite possible" Hackman, due to his advanced Alzheimer's, was not aware that Arakawa had already died.
Maintenance workers Jesse Kesler — who had worked for the couple for 16 years — and Roland Lowe Begay arrive at the property and discover both bodies. Hackman is found on the floor of the mud room. Arakawa is found on the floor of a bathroom, a space heater near her body. Arakawa shows significant decomposition including mummification of her hands and feet. One dog is found dead in a crate approximately 10–15 feet from Arakawa's body, likely from dehydration and starvation. Two other dogs are found alive; they appear to have had access to a dog door.
New Mexico Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Heather Jarrell holds a press conference and officially announces the causes of death. Arakawa's death is confirmed as hantavirus pulmonary syndrome — the first hantavirus death in New Mexico for 2025. State public health veterinarian Erin Phipps notes that rodent evidence (feces, live traps, dead rodents) was found in multiple structures on the property, though the main house was considered lower risk. Between 1993 and 2022, New Mexico reported 122 hantavirus cases and 52 deaths.
Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS) is a rare but severe respiratory illness caused by hantaviruses, which are carried primarily by wild rodents. In the United States, the Sin Nombre virus — hosted by the common deer mouse — is responsible for the majority of cases. New Mexico, with its large rural rodent populations, is one of the states with the highest historical case counts.
Infection occurs when a person breathes in air particles contaminated with infected rodent urine, droppings, or saliva. It can also occur through direct contact with contaminated materials. It does not spread between people in the United States strains (the Andes virus strain, found in South America, is the only known exception).
Symptoms begin within one to eight weeks of exposure and initially resemble the flu — fever, fatigue, muscle aches, and gastrointestinal symptoms. Within days, roughly half of patients progress to the pulmonary phase, where fluid accumulates in the lungs, causing severe respiratory distress. At that stage, without intensive medical care, death can occur within 24 to 48 hours. There is no vaccine and no specific treatment.
Investigators believe Arakawa may have initially mistaken her symptoms for COVID or influenza — consistent with the internet searches found on her computer and the mention of flu-like symptoms in her email to her massage therapist. The timeline suggests she became too ill to keep her doctor's appointment and died alone at home that afternoon.
State health veterinarian Erin Phipps stated at the March 7 press conference that while the main house posed a "low risk" of hantavirus exposure, other buildings and structures on the Hackman estate showed clear signs of rodent activity. Investigators documented more than 700 photos of the property, including images of rodent feces, dead rodents, and live traps across multiple outbuildings.
The Santa Fe area and broader New Mexico region are endemic for hantavirus. Deer mice — the primary carrier of the Sin Nombre virus — are widespread in rural and semi-rural residential properties in the Southwest. Simple activities like cleaning a garage, barn, or storage shed where rodents have been present are among the most common sources of exposure.
Gene Hackman, 95, died approximately one week after his wife — likely between February 17 and 18, based on pacemaker data. His official cause of death was hypertensive and atherosclerotic cardiac disease, with advanced Alzheimer's disease as a significant contributory factor. He had a history of extensive heart disease including multiple prior heart procedures and prior heart attacks.
Investigators found no food in his stomach, suggesting he had not eaten recently — consistent with the possibility that, due to his Alzheimer's, he was unable to care for himself after Arakawa died. The medical examiner said it was "difficult to answer" but "quite possible" that Hackman did not comprehend that his wife had passed. He left an estate valued at approximately $80 million, bequeathed to Arakawa — creating a complex legal situation since she predeceased him, triggering probate proceedings.
The deaths of Betsy Arakawa and Gene Hackman brought broader public attention to hantavirus, a disease that most Americans associate with rural or occupational exposure rather than residential risk. Several public health takeaways emerged:
Standard masks offer no protection against hantavirus. The CDC recommends N95 or P100 respirators for any activity in spaces with potential rodent contamination. These are the top-rated options, currently discounted up to 50%.
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This page provides factual reporting based on publicly available official statements and news coverage. It does not constitute medical advice. Last reviewed: May 2026.