The couple were on a self-guided tour of the property when they immediately noticed a problem upon entry
A couple on a house viewing were left with no choice but to alert the police after stumbling upon a horrifying discovery. The pair are believed to have been conducting a ‘self-guided tour’ of the property at the time.
Upon entering through the backdoor, they instantly sensed something was amiss. It was then that they found what is thought to be human remains in an ‘enhanced state of decomposition’.
Local news outlets were informed by the police that they were summoned to a house on Delphos Avenue in Dayton, Ohio, USA, around 10am on 10 September. They were initially responding to reports of ‘suspicious circumstances’.
Dayton Police Lieutenant Eric Sheldon told PEOPLE magazine: “Human remains in an enhanced state of decomposition were located inside the home.”
The Dayton Daily News reported that the body was found ‘badly decomposed’. In a press briefing, Sergeant Creigee Coleman said: “At this point in time, it’s hard to determine if they [the deceased] were an actual resident of the house or if they were squatting or were a missing person trying to keep warm.”
He informed journalists that the police were attempting to identify the deceased in order to notify their next of kin. He suspects the body has been in the house for ‘quite a very long period of time’.
The remains have since been transported to the Montgomery County Coroner’s Office. The police have stated that they are in touch with the owner of the property.
Sheldon explained the homicide department will now lead the investigation, something he described as “standard procedure”, and the crime lab will work on the identification.
Neighbour Donald Arnold told WHIO7 that he had noticed a “foul smell” coming from the house, initially believing it was a dead animal.
He said: “There was a foul, foul odor within the last maybe two weeks. The stench is unbearable.
“I thought it was probably a deceased animal, so that’s why I never really did any closer smell tests.”
Police are now appealing for any witnesses as part of their investigation.
It comes just weeks after a body was found in a derelict property in Rishton, Lancashire.
Officers said the body “appears to have been there for some time”.
The death was being treated as unexplained. A Lancashire Police spokesman said: “We were called to Blackburn Road, Rishton, at 12.34pm on 9th August following reports a body had been found inside a derelict property.”