THE skeletal remains of a dad thought to have died 15 years ago have been discovered at his home in Spain.
Firefighters were called out by an elderly neighbour after floodwater from Storm Alice started leaking into her flat below.
EPAThe body was found after water started leaking from his run-down apartment in Valencia[/caption]
Emergency services found part of his skeleton in the bedroom and other bones in the living room – said to have been carried there by pigeons who had started nesting in the run-down property.
Astonished locals living in the apartment block in Valencia said the last time they saw the man – said to be a retired builder named Antonio – was in 2010.
The dad-of-two had been living alone in the top-floor flat after splitting from his wife and didn’t talk to his two adult sons, according to local reports.
The body was removed and taken to Valencia’s Institute of Forensic Medicine.
Forensic experts were seen leaving the house with white bags, which contained his remains.
A National Police homicide group has been put in charge of the ongoing investigation ahead of a post-mortem due to start today.
Neighbours were under the impression the dad had gone to live at a retirement home.
His utility payments and community fees were up to date because they were direct-debited from his bank – which his pension was still being paid into.
And the regular payments meant there was no cause for concern about his whereabouts.
One of the neighbours who called in firefighters when water started leaking into her place from above told local media: “The water was coming into my mum’s bedroom as well as through the ceiling of her bathroom and the dining room.
“It had been years since we saw the man living above.
“As his windows were broken and it had been raining heavily, I thought initially the water was coming in through them and leaking down.
“We managed to see from a look outside that the problem was on a terrace, where it turned out a glass was blocking the guttering.
“When the firefighters and police accessed the property, they found the body of someone who had been dead for several years, as well as lots of pigeons.
“The place was in a really bad state. The last time we saw the owner was in 2010.
“The police told me there wasn’t a lot left of his body and it was basically a skeleton.”
One well-placed source said: “If it hadn’t been for the heavy rain, this man’s remains would probably still be lying undiscovered.”
It comes as Storm Alice continues to wreak havoc on Spain’s east coast and the Balearic Islands.
Yesterday evening, Ibiza suffered fresh flooding as the army was called in again to help local emergency responders for the second time in less than a fortnight.
ReutersStorm Alice continues to wreak havoc on Spain’s east coast and the Balearic Islands[/caption]