Elderly couple whose bodies were found in Newry home may have ‘been there for some time’

An elderly couple whose bodies were found in their isolated home near Newry may have been dead for some time, a local councillor has said.

The Police Service of Northern Ireland said detectives are investigating the circumstances surrounding the deaths of a man and a woman at a property in the Newry area.

The deaths were reported to police on Thursday, the PSNI said a statement, without giving further details.

Police enquiries remain ongoing, it said.

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The remains were discovered after the PSNI called to the property following concerns being expressed to them about the couple. The bodies were left at the scene overnight and were removed for postmortem late on Friday afternoon.

SDLP councillor Declan McAteer told BBC Radio Ulster the couple had not been seen “for some time”.

“It is a very tragic situation, it is very unclear. A very elderly couple have been found deceased in their own dwelling and apparently had been there for some time,” he said. “I have spoken to some members of the local community who are saddened and totally shocked and bewildered about the situation.”

The house where the remains were found is located on the Newry to Warrenpoint road, about 3km from Newry.

Local sources said while the road was busy and the property was not in a remote area, it was sparsely populated. The same sources said it appeared the couple had not been seen for some time, possibly weeks or even longer.

“People are saying that now in retrospect, though this couple very much kept themselves to themselves so it seems it wasn’t really noticed they hadn’t been seen for long time,” one source told The Irish Times.

“They’d lived there for years, but you’d never seen them socially and they don’t appear to have any immediate family in the area, not that anyone has been able to place anyway.”

The same source believed the man and women were elderly, suggesting they may have been in their 80s, describing them as having lived in a manner that was isolated from others in the local community.

However, he also believed people from the local community had checked on their welfare during the pandemic period. - Additional reporting: PA