Santa Fe Fire Chief Brian Moya opened up about the mummification process in the wake of Gene Hackman and his wife’s death

A fire chief involved in the Gene Hackman case has revealed gruesome details about the mummification process.

Santa Fe Fire Chief Brian Moya was speaking out following the death of Hackman and his wife Betsy, who both were said to be mummified.

Asked whether he could tell from the state of mummification who out of the couple may have died first, Moya said that was an answer for the Sheriff’s office.

But talking generally about the mummification process, he added: “If somebody was down for a long time their hands could be blackened and stuff to that nature. They could have no eyes. The eyes could have been gone by that time.”

He added: “My indication is that we don’t know how long they were down. My team’s main focus was to find out if they were deceased.”

It’s been previously reported how Betsy “showed obvious signs of death, body decomposition, bloating in her face and mummification in both hands and feet.” Hackman was found to have the same signs of decomposition as his wife.

Gene Hackman’s death is being investigated
It comes as the Mirror told yesterday how cops are set to quiz Hackman’s three children as they try to discover the actor and his wife’s last movements. The star is survived by the three children he had with his ex-wife, Faye Maltese: Christopher, 65, Elizabeth, 63, and Leslie, 58.

And police have confirmed they are speaking to “family members” as they try to piece together Gene and his wife Betsy’s final days.The pair were found dead in separate rooms of their New Mexico home earlier this week.

Fire chief Brian Moya opens up ( 
Image:
Getty Images)
Santa Fe County Sheriff Adan Mendoza said that it had been a “challenge” so far to determine the last people the couple spoke to.It was previously suggested that the maintenance workers may have spoken to the couple last.

But it’s now not clear if this was the case or not. Daughter Leslie, 58, has previously said that she hadn’t been in contact with her dad for a while. He said: “We were close. I hadn’t talked to them for a couple of months, but everything was normal and everything was good.”

Her sister, Elizabeth Jean, 62, previously said the family believed that toxic fumes led to the couple’s deaths. But this has been ruled out after a postmortem. Cops also believe that two cell phones found at the property could hold a vital key too. They have taken them away to be analysed and may have to draft in external forensic experts to crack them.

At a press conference on Friday, it emerged that Hackman likely died about nine days before his body was discovered by authorities.Mendoza confirmed the last event noted on Hackman’s pacemaker was February 17. When asked if this could be the day Hackman died, Mendoza noted that was a “very good assumption.”

“According to the pathologist, I think that is a very good assumption that that was his last day of life,” Mendoza said. They were unable to establish if Hackman or his wife died first. Both were found “mummified”, as well as the deceased dog in the closet of the bathroom. The pair were last publicly photographed together on March 28, 2024. Hackman was spotted holding onto his wife’s arm, while holding onto a walking cane in his other hand.