Gene Hackman and Betsy's pals detail last meeting with couple before tragedy

Friends of Gene Hackman and Betsy Arakawa have spoken out about the final meeting with the pair before their deaths.

Earlier this week, the bodies of Gene, 95, and classical pianist Betsy, 65, were found in their Santa Fe mansion in New Mexico. A cause of death for the couple, who were found dead in their home alongside one of their three dogs, is yet to be determined and an investigation into the couple's deaths is ongoing.

As the Santa Fe County Sheriff's department tries to establish a timeline of the couple's final movements before their deaths, friends have now spoken out on their last meeting with the pair.

Daniel Lenihan told CNN’s Erin Burnett Friday night: "Last time we saw them, they were alive and well. Meanwhile, Lenihan's wife Barbara, said she had last seen Betsy a few weeks ago at a home decor shop the two had opened together.

Barbara said: "They were so delightful to be around". She added that the couple were very fond of one another. "Probably never seen a couple that got along and enjoyed each other so much," she said.

Meanwhile, Barbara, 75, revealed the last she heard of Betsy was around "two to three weeks ago", when her son Brendan spoke with the pianist about the upcoming birth of his second child.

"[Brendan] was telling Betsy it was a boy, and she was very excited," Barbara, 75, told PEOPLE. "It wasn't a real long message, but then Brendan was hoping to hear back again soon."

Meanwhile, the couple couple's other son Aaron, 38, told the publication his brother Brendan "really looked up to Gene". He said: "He was always extremely kind to us, but everyone else I ever saw him interact with, I think he was very honest, had a lot of integrity. He was an incredible artist. He taught my brother and I to paint some, and the two of them were always so thoughtful."

It comes after cops revealed they were in the process of establishing a timeline of the couple's last movements and have gathered evidence to help them to do so.

In a statement during a conference held yesterday Sheriff Adan Mendoza said: "Now, collected from the residence, from this search warrant; there were two green in colour cell phones, two bottles of medication, one bottle of over-the-counter Tylenol. My request, medical records, and a 2025 monthly planner calendar. Those items were secured from the residence for evidentiary purposes."

Meanwhile, evidence found near Gene Hackman's wife Betsy Arakawa's body is "significant" and "of concern", police have said. Santa Fe Sheriff Adan Mendoza is said to have claimed the pills are "significant evidence" and are "of concern". He is said to have described the pills as "very important evidence" and said they have been passed onto a medical investigator.