SANTA FE, N.M. (KRQE) – New Mexico Gas Company found five issues during their investigation at the home of Gene Hackman and Betsy Arakawa, but they “are not believed to be a factor in the deaths,” the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office said Tuesday.
Hackman, Arakawa, and their dog were found dead inside their home on Old Sunset Trail in Santa Fe on Feb. 26. New Mexico Gas Company was called to the home that night to investigate and run tests on the property’s gas line.
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New Mexico Gas Company told the sheriff’s office Monday that while there were “no significant findings” in the investigation for gas leaks or carbon monoxide, they issued five red tags at Hackman and Arakawa’s home, the sheriff’s office wrote in a news release Tuesday.
One of the tags was for a “minuscule leak” of 0.33% gas in the air, which is not a lethal amount, according to the news release from the sheriff’s office. The four other red tags issued by the gas company were for “code enforcement violations not involving gas leaks or carbon monoxide.”
The sheriff’s office said those tags were issued for a water heater and gas log lighters installed in three fireplaces.
“Those results are not believed to be a factor in the deaths of Gene Hackman, Betsy Arakawa or their dog though the information was relayed to the Office of the Medical Investigator for consideration,” Denise Womack Avila, the sheriff’s office public information officer, wrote in an email accompanying the news release.
Hackman, 95, was found on the floor of the home’s mud room alongside a walking cane and sunglasses. Arakawa, 65, was found on the bathroom floor near a space heater. Deputies also found an open prescription bottle with pills scattered on a nearby countertop.
In the bathroom closet, investigators found one of the couple’s three dogs dead, according to a Feb. 26 search warrant affidavit from the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office. Deputies found the two other dogs alive on the property.
Santa Fe County Sheriff Adan Mendoza said in a Feb. 28 news conference that both Hackman and Arakawa tested negative for carbon monoxide poisoning and there was no trauma to the bodies. The sheriff also said Hackman’s pacemaker last registered an event on February 17, 2025.
Investigators initially noted in the search warrant affidavit that there were no issues with the gas pipes and no signs of a carbon monoxide leak at the home.
While carrying out the search warrant at the couple’s home, investigators seized Tylenol, thyroid medication, and a medication to treat high blood pressure. Other items removed included health records, a 2025 monthly planner, and two cell phones.