Community in shock after ‘recluse’ man is found dead
A CLOSE-KNIT Cowley community are in shock after finding a “recluse” neighbour dead at home.
Residents reported the death to police after finding the man’s body in his Verona Close flat near Uxbridge at 9.15am on Friday May 11.
Officers attended the property and a man was pronounced dead at the scene. His death is not being treated as suspicious.
Jo Thorp, who was among the three neighbours who found him, said: “It’s so sad – we’re all very close in the block, we have tea together a lot and speak to each other, but he was absolutely a recluse. None of us even knew his name until the police told us it on Friday – it’s so sad.”
“It’s the fact that he was there for so long and absolutely nobody knew he was dead, nobody knew he was gone. It’s really shocked us all.”
She added: “One of my neighbours who lived on the same floor as him said the only time she saw him was when he put his arm out the door to collect takeaways.”
Miss Thorp said that she and neighbours had noticed a bad smell in the building about a month before they found the man’s body, but had put it down to the bins.
She added: “One of my neighbours is a paramedic and we finally decided to go in and check the flat on Friday because we noticed the door was on the latch. Two of us waited at the door while she went in – she realised what had happened and called the police immediately, the smell was awful.”
She added: “It’s really shocked all of us. It’s the last thing you expect – we have no idea how it happened.
“We’re a close community and even though we didn’t know him, if there’s a coroner’s hearing then we’d all like to go to show our respects.
“He never had any visitors and we don’t know where his family are - it’s just really sad.”
A Metropolitan Police spokesman said: “Police were called at 9.20am on Friday to reports of a dead body at a residential address in Verona Close, Uxbridge.
“Officers and the London Ambulance Service attended. The man (no further details) was pronounced dead at the scene. The death is not being treated as suspicious. A file has been prepared for the coroner.”
Efforts are being made to trace his next of kin.
A file is being prepared for the coroner.