Woman lay dead for years at home

Woman lay dead for years at home

http://news.aol.co.uk/world-news/story/woman-lay-dead-for-years-at-home/1872917/?icid=maing-grid7%7Cuk-ws-bb%7Cdl1%7Csec1_lnk2%7C69885

July 06, 2011
An elderly woman lay dead for eight years in her Sydney home before her body was finally discovered
An elderly Australian woman lay dead in her home for eight years before her body was discovered.

When she apparently vanished from view in Sydney in 2003, no one called the police. Not her relatives, her neighbours, or government officials, who kept paying her welfare benefits into a bank account that sat untouched.

New South Wales state police said that they discovered the woman's skeletal remains on Tuesday, after her sister-in-law finally called them to report that she had not heard from the woman - who would have turned 87 next month - since 2003.

"It's sad that the woman appears to have died several years ago without anyone noticing," said police Acting Superintendent Zoran Dzevlan.

Police were trying to determine exactly when the woman died, but did not think the death was suspicious.

The woman, whose name was not released by police, was a recluse who had no relatives except for her sister-in-law, Mr Dzevlan said. The two had a row in 2003 and never spoke again. Police have not said why the sister-in-law waited years to report the woman missing, or what prompted her to call now.

As the years passed, utility companies cut off the power and water to the woman's home. Centrelink, the government's welfare agency, continued to pay her benefits to her bank account, which remained untouched. Her post had been redirected to her sister-in-law's home before 2003, but eventually stopped. Neighbours told police they had not seen her in years and assumed the house was vacant.

Police said the woman's home was locked and furnished, but looked like no one had lived there for years.

"To hear today that an elderly lady can pass away, be dead for eight years and for Centrelink to still be sending checks to her bank account and for those checks not to be cashed - surely that must set off the alarm bells within government," New South Wales Police Minister Mike Gallacher said.

"(It) really does highlight the need for this state and indeed our community to work closer at building relationships with our community," he said.
How sad that two sisters should drift apart and a tradegy like this happen.

Yes I agree this is very sad.

It's almost like an 'olde world film' - discovering a derelict house after years only to find the owner dead. I wonder why the neighbours didn't take much interest.

I know families can drift but when there only two sisters left one would think they wouldn't let an argument come between them.

I found a dead body once and the mans dog was eating him.He had been dead for about two weeks we think.The old woman in the flat downstairs never liked the man but must have heard the commotion what with the dog starving as well.It was very messy,the cops came and arranged the body to go then they turned out all his pockets in the wardrobe took all his money and scarpered and left me and my mate to clear up the mess.

Lioned wrote:I found a dead body once and the mans dog was eating him.He had been dead for about two weeks we think.The old woman in the flat downstairs never liked the man but must have heard the commotion what with the dog starving as well.It was very messy,the cops came and arranged the body to go then they turned out all his pockets in the wardrobe took all his money and scarpered and left me and my mate to clear up the mess.

don't know what to say to that.....I'm spechless!!

OP is very sad. I'd hate to think I wouldn't be missed by anyone for that long.

A sad story of the old lady but your story must have been horrific Lioned, we read about these things but to actually have it happen to you must be awful.

The man was a tenant of the firm i worked for,he was in his eighties and was a war veteran.He had no next of kin and we had to inform the 'Government Office' that deals with such deaths and they have a statutory duty to advertise for anyone to come forward and nobody did,I asked them what to do with all his belongings and furniture etc as we had to clear the flat out for redecoration.They asked me if there was anything of value and i said not as far as i could see,so they just said chuck it out and burn it !! So we had a big bonfire in the garden,i was only a kid at the time and didnt really know much as i'd only been in the job a few weeks.
Me and my mate found his war medals (which i still have) and a dagger (which my mate took) and there was a small carved table which i think he must have bought home from India where he had served as an officer,which i saved from the bonfire as i thought it was quite nice.
The dog was one of those big spotty dogs,which i think was maybe trying to wake up his master but had chewed quite a lump out of his leg,dont know what happened to him.
Strange thing is at the time none of it really shocked me that much apart from the Government Official who told me those things over the phone when i thought surely they would want to come and check things out !

Though i was not particularly 'fazed' at the time i suspect in terms of defining moments it probably set my opinions on life (and death) and maybe contributed somewhat in turning me into the cynical old bugger i am now.

Very sad that a war hero can die with no known relatives or friends except his dog,who chews his leg off,the police ransack his flat and two young urchins are left to burn his worldly belongings.