Why questions over who died first – Gene Hackman or his wife – may hold the key to who will inherit his $80mn fortune

A week ago, it seemed as if all the questions about the mysterious death of reclusive Hollywood legend Gene Hackman, found ‘partially mummified’ in his home alongside his younger wife, had been answered.

In a dramatic televised press conference, police in New Mexico announced that Betsy Arakawa had died first from a rare rodent-borne virus.

Seven days later, Hackman, who suffered from Alzheimer’s, had passed away. It is believed he died from heart failure, confirmed by data from his pacemaker. The pair then lay undiscovered for a further eight days, until maintenance workers stumbled upon the macabre scene.

Case closed, as the sort of hard-bitten, on-screen detective once played by the double Oscar-winning Hackman might have concluded.

But judging from the latest revelations emanating from America, the title credits have yet to roll on this saga – because yesterday the Mail revealed details of the couple’s wills.

Hackman, who was worth $80 million, arranged to leave his fortune and sprawling $3.8 million Santa Fe home to a trust overseen by 65-year-old Betsy.

Given his ill-health and the fact he was 95, the assumption must have been that he would pre-decease his wife.

Betsy, who had no children and whose closest-living relative is her elderly mother, in turn had arranged that when she died, her wealth would be distributed to local charities that the couple supported during their life and to the settlement of medical debts.

But if she died first – which it now appears she did – any of her money would also go into the same trust as set up by her husband.

What arrangements exist within the trust – known as the Gene Hackman Living Trust – is unknown because, unlike the will, it is a private document.

Which means it is unclear where Hackman’s three children stand following this double tragedy. And whether all, or just some of them, now stand to benefit from their father’s fortune.

Interestingly, while Betsy was to have had a pivotal role in handling his estate, Hackman did not give any of his children similar responsibilities. Instead, a lawyer, Julia Peters, was named as his ‘personal representative’ in case his wife died before him.

Yesterday, she sought to block the public release of autopsy and investigative reports, including photos and police body-camera video, related to the deaths.

Ms Peters argued the family had a right to privacy having lived an ‘exemplary private life for over 30 years in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and did not showcase their lifestyle’. Whether she was acting at the request of Hackman’s children is unclear.

The product of his first marriage, it appears Christopher, 65, Elizabeth, 62, and Leslie, 58, had had complicated relationships with the star, something Hackman himself observed.