Gene Hackman’s daughter told cops to bury dog with Betsy Arakawa after police discovered mummified bodies, newly released bodycam footage shows

nypost.com:

TMZ first reported. “Yeah, I’m thinking cremate the dog and bury it with Betsy,” Elizabeth can be heard telling the deputy. “The French Connection” star’s grieving daughter also made a heartbreaking request. “If the dog was wearing a collar could you save that for me?” she asked, according to the footage.The dog, a kelpie mix named Zinna, was described as being “mummified” due to the dry New Mexico air and died of dehydration and starvation, veterinarians concluded.Zinna, short for “Zinfandel,” was found in a crate near the body of Arakawa, 65, whose cause of death was the rare rodent-borne disease hantavirus pulmonary syndrome.Hackman, 95, succumbed to complications from heart problems and advanced Alzheimer’s disease about a week after Arakawa died, officials said.

Hackman and his wife were partially mummified when they were discovered roughly a week after their deaths, with the “Unforgiven” star’s body found in a mudroom while Arakawa’s was located in a bathroom, near a crate that contained Zinna’s body.

The couple’s two other dogs — Bear, a German shepherd, and Nikita, an Akita-shepherd mix — were found alive on their palatial property and adopted by Joey Padilla Sante Fe Tails pet spa.

In other newly released bodycam footage, sheriff’s officers speak to a groundskeeper, who got emotional when realizing that Hackman and Arawawa — whom he described as being warm and friendly — and visibly upset when he learned they had died in their longtime home. “I didn’t see anything that would make me think, ‘something’s going on,’” the worker told officers according to TMZ.The landscaper further added his dismay at “seeing them like that.”Elizabeth Hackman, 63, was one of three children the two-time Oscar winner shared with first.