A 60-year-old woman was found dead and mummified inside a basement apartment in the Agios Konstantinos neighborhood of Larissa, central Greece, more than a year after her death.
The grim discovery was made by chance on the morning of Aug. 19, when police were called to open the property as part of a real estate transaction on 28th Oktovriou Street.
The previous owner, who lived in another city, believed the basement was empty.
Initial estimates indicate that the woman had died at least a year earlier without anyone reporting her missing.
Identity investigation underway
The woman’s body was found on the floor of the basement. A bag containing her Greek identification card was discovered beside her, indicating that she was originally from Thessaloniki and had moved to Larissa after living abroad.
The Larissa Police Department is investigating to locate her relatives. DNA laboratory testing by the Directorate of Criminal Investigations is also pending for her official identification.
Death attributed to natural causes
A forensic examination found that the woman died of pathological, or natural, causes.
However, her body did not undergo the usual decomposition process. Instead, it became mummified, a phenomenon reportedly recorded for the first time in local records.
The unusual preservation of the body also explains why the death was not discovered earlier. Because the body did not decompose normally, it did not produce the odor that would typically have alerted neighbors to what had happened.
The woman’s body has remained unidentified at the morgue of the Larissa Forensic Service for more than a week as authorities continue their efforts to establish her identity and locate relatives.
