The body of a reclusive woman from a Boston suburb was found in her $1.2 million home – and her sister may have been living with the decomposing corpse for more than a year and a half.
The body of Hope Wheaton, 67, was discovered last month by a cousin in the kitchen of the Brookline mansion that Wheaton and sister Lynda Waldman shared, the Boston Globe reported.
Though circumstances behind her death are murky, officials say Wheaton’s body was significantly decomposed.
Her body’s condition “was consistent with a report” that she passed away in summer 2015 and showed no visible signs of trauma, a spokesman for the Norfolk District Attorney told the Globe.
The run-down home at 122 Clinton Road was filled with clutter and in “total disrepair,” according to neighbor Harriet Allen, a friend of Wheaton’s.
The sisters, who were both recluses, also began looking worse for wear after some time, Allen said.
“Usually it was Hope who was healthy and Lynda who looked like she was ill,” Allen said. “It became reversed somewhere along the line.”
Waldman hasn’t been charged with any crimes. Autopsy results on Wheaton’s body are pending.
“I loved Hope. I don’t know what to say about this,” Allen added.