A search warrant reveals which pills were found inside the home of Gene Hackman and his wife, Betsy Arakawa, who were found dead in their New Mexico home on Wednesday, Feb. 26.
Hackman, 95, and Arakawa, 65, were found in different parts of the home. Arakawa was found in the bathroom near a bottle of pills.
The warrant, obtained by PEOPLE, states that the pills found were an unspecified thyroid medication, Tylenol and diltiazem, a medication used to treat high blood pressure.
Hackman was found fully clothed, with a pair of sunglasses found nearby, which could suggest that he had fallen, according to an affidavit filed by a Santa Fe detective.
Arakawa was found showing signs of “mummification,” according to the affidavit, suggesting she could have been dead for days, if not longer. A deceased German Shepherd was also found in the home.
Speaking on Today, Santa Fe County Sheriff Adan Mendoza said it was possible the couple had been dead for weeks.
The sheriff said authorities are “trying to put together a timeline,” but said that it would be a “challenge,” noting that the couple were very private.
In the affidavit, authorities said there was no sign of a carbon monoxide leak or poisoning, but speaking on Today, fire chief Brian Moya did not rule out the possibility that a leak could have caused the deaths.
“That was a home with natural gas in it, so it could have [played a factor],” Moya said. “There’s a lot of unanswered [questions] there. When we arrived, we made sure our people as well as the sheriff were safe, and there was nothing that we found. We also went back again yesterday to do another round of searches … and we didn’t find anything as well.”
Hackman, considered one of the finest screen actors of his generation, was a two-time Oscar winner for The French Connection and Unforgiven, and was nominated for a total of five Academy Awards. Arakawa was a classical pianist. They had been married since 1991.
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