A CORONER today described the unexplained deaths of an elderly couple as ?among the most mysterious? he has ever investigated.
Charles Evans, 73, and his partner of more than 20 years, Eira Underwood, 66, were discovered lying dead on their backs at their flat in Newport, South Wales.
Extensive blood tests and a lengthy investigation by Gwent Police failed to uncover the reason for the deaths.
The pair were found by Mr Evans?s friend Archie Gadd on Wednesday May 18 2005, which was five days after they were last seen alive.
Mr Gadd said Ms Underwood had abused alcohol for many years; a problem exacerbated after the death of her mother.
He said Mr Evans had also become frail in the later years of his life and had started to show symptoms of depression.
Mr Gadd told the inquest in Newport that he called round to their second floor flat in Collingwood Avenue on the morning he found them, in order to take Mr Evans on their weekly shopping trip together.
He said Mr Evans would normally be standing in the window awaiting his arrival but this morning he wasn?t there so he went up to the flat for the first time.
?I shouted up and then went to the door and into the room,? said Mr Gadd. ?When I opened the door that was when I saw them.?
He saw Ms Underwood naked from the waist up, lying on her back in the living room near the settee. Mr Evans was around four foot away on his back with his head towards the bedroom.
Both had blood around their mouth.
?He (Mr Evans) was staring into space and they had this blood stuff,? said Mr Gadd. ?I didn?t stay too long and dialled 999.?
He added: ?It was terrible.?
Detective Inspector David Edwards said the deaths were initially treated as suspicious because the untidiness of the flat suggested a robbery had taken place.
He said this was ruled out when it was established there was no forced entry and that the couple had lived in this manner for some time.
A post-mortem found the pair had died of gastric bleeding but could not uncover what had caused this.
DI Edwards said various toxicological tests subsequently found no presence of drugs. Samples were also sent to the poison department of Guy?s Hospital in London but they could not detect anything abnormal.
Carbon monoxide poisoning was also ruled out.
Gwent Coroner David Bowen said: ?There is no doubt the terminal cause was gastric bleeding which accounted for the blood around the mouth but the underlying cause of bleeding was unable to be ascertained.
?There is no evidence of trauma or third party involvement or natural disease in the body which would account for the deaths.
?It is for reasons which I will explain later, that the deaths of Mr Evans and his partner Eira Underwood have been among the most mysterious I have ever been called to investigate.?
He added: ?Extensive tests using the country?s foremost experts and state-of-the-art equipment have also drawn a blank.?
He said later that for two people to die in the same room and around the same time without an explanation was ?exceptional?.
In returning open verdicts, Mr Bowen said the deaths will ?forever be a complete mystery?.
http://icwales.icnetwork.co.uk/0100news ... _page.html
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