Gene Hackman’s Final Autopsy Reveals Heart Issues, Signs of Fasting

The final autopsy reports for Oscar-winning actor Gene Hackman has been released by the Office of the Medical Investigator at the New Mexico University School of Medicine, citing signs of heart issues and fasting, and concluding he died a natural death due to “hypertensive and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease.”

The autopsy, obtained by “Extra,” notes Hackman’s history of “congestive heart failure,” “severe chronic hypertensive changes” to his kidneys, all the earmarks of Alzheimer’s disease, and also evidence of going without food for an extended period of time.

Hackman was extremely thin in his later years, and investigators have also determined his wife died days before him, meaning he may have been unable to feed himself due to his advanced cognitive issues.

Hackman is thought to have been basically helpless, as he did not call authorities when his wife died and did not free a penned-up dog the couple owned. The dog died of starvation and dehydration.

Also shown in his autopsy: Hackman tested negative for hantavirus, the disease that killed Betsy.

Hackman, 95, and Arakawa, 65, were found dead in February in their New Mexico home, a tragedy that initially confounded police. It was determined that Betsy, who knew she was ill with something — as evidenced by her visits to a doctor and her Google search history — had died of hantavirus in their bathroom days before Hackman had died in another part of the house.

The official death report notes Hackman was found on a “mudroom floor.”

In a heartbreaking video, one of two living dogs in their home was found loyally guarding their bodies.

The couple was remembered at a private memorial in Santa Fe attended by close friends and family earlier this month.

Hackman’s adult children Christopher, Elizabeth and Leslie were among the mourners.