The body of an elderly woman, who had died in her apartment, was accidentally found after 6 whole years. People became aware of the death of the woman from the French city of Rouen only after those living in the apartment beneath her complained of a water leak, writes The Daily Mirror.
After the outrage of the neighbors, the apartment was broken into and searched. And that is how the authorities came upon a horrifying scene. The police estimated the approximate time of the death of the woman based on the last letters she had printed out.
The terrifying event ruffled some feathers in France. It became the reason for heated debate pertaining to the fate of retirees and how a great many of them are forsaken by their children and left to take care of themselves.
The old woman's bills were paid by checking account, with the transactions continuing after her death. The woman was not particularly close to her neighbors, which was why they did not notice her absence at all. So far, there have been no relatives of the woman found and it is not clear whether there are such still living.
"I'm not at all surprised, everyone lives on their own here, " commented a resident of the same building.
Lately, the instances of people whose bodies are found much later after their death have become ever more common. A deceased British woman was also found in her home 6 years after her death.
The British woman, Ann Leitrim, had been living in her apartment by herself. After her car suddenly vanished from the parking and no one saw her again, her neighbors thought that she had moved to a new address.
But later on, a bailiff and 2 locksmiths entered her apartment and happened upon her remains.
"I can't believe it! What's horrifying is that after so many years, no one noticed anything and did not inquire about what had happened, " commented an appalled policeman.
"I truly feel guilty that I did not once knock on the door and did not try to go in or tell anyone, but we all really thought that she had moved, " repented a neighbor of the deceased.
