The man living next door to the deceased, who had been in his apartment for several months, was unaware of his appearance.

A man's body was discovered in his flat, over a month after his passing. The grim discovery was made by a man who was delivering leaflets in the area. The deceased was identified as Michael Roy Palmer, a 57-year-old resident of Higher Bugle. It was revealed that Mr. Palmer lived a solitary life and none of his neighbors could recall seeing him in recent times.

During the investigation, the police found out that the residents of the neighboring properties were not even aware of what Mr. Palmer looked like. As a result, it took them a considerable amount of time to locate any of his relatives. Due to the advanced state of decomposition, it was impossible to formally identify him as well.

At the inquest hearing held this week, it was disclosed that Mr. Palmer had been living alone in his dilapidated property for most of his life. He had lost touch with any friends or family. The police were able to link the body to Mr. Palmer based on the fact that he was the registered owner of the property and a vehicle found parked in the driveway.

The deceased was discovered on the evening of September 18, 2023, when a man delivering leaflets noticed someone lying on the floor of the living room with a light on. He immediately alerted the authorities and they arrived at the scene at around 11 pm. However, gaining access to the property was a challenge as the outside was heavily overgrown. The police had to force their way in through the front door.

Upon entering the property, they found a badly decomposed body and could not determine the age, race, or gender of the deceased. It was evident that the person had been there for a considerable amount of time. The gas heater was found to be in the on position, but it had run out of gas, indicating that a significant amount of time had passed since the person's passing.

Detective Sergeant Jonathan Harcourt, who was involved in the investigation, stated that the property was in a poor condition, although it was tidy. He also mentioned that the level of decomposition made it difficult to determine if any crime or assault had taken place, but there was no evidence to suggest so.

The police searched for any evidence that could help determine the time of Mr. Palmer's death. They found a shopping receipt dated August 1, and the vehicle registration was also picked up on police cameras in the St Austell area on the same date.

Dr. Grigor, who conducted the post-mortem, stated that the body was in an advanced stage of decomposition, known as "skeletonization". This indicated that the body had been discovered up to two months after death. He also mentioned that due to the extent of decomposition, it was difficult to determine the cause of death. The toxicology report did not provide any additional evidence.

The inquest concluded that Mr. Palmer was a recluse who passed away due to natural causes, although the exact cause could not be determined due to the advanced state of decomposition. It was also revealed that Mr. Palmer had not been in contact with his family for over 30 years, and they only became aware of his passing during the process of probate.

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