Gene Hackman died at home a week after wife Betsy Arakawa died from hantavirus, authorities say

Forensic experts came to a heartrending conclusion Friday about the manner of death for actor Gene Hackman: he died of heart disease with complications from Alzheimer's disease on an empty stomach a week after a rare, rodent-borne disease took the life of his wife at their home in Santa Fe.

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The partially mummified remains of Hackman, 95, and Betsy Arakawa, 65, were discovered 26 February when maintenance and security workers showed up at the home and alerted police. Authorities unraveled the mysterious circumstances and revealed that Arakawa likely died 11 February at home from hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, a rare but potentially fatal disease spread by infected rodent droppings. Hackman, in the advanced stages of Alzheimer's, apparently was unaware t