Gardaí say a body discovered at a derelict house in Dublin where other people have been living may have been there for as long as four years.
The badly decomposed remains of a man were found at an address at Royal Canal Bank West in Phibsboro yesterday by a man carrying out construction work at the property.
Garda sources said neighbours have come forward and told the investigating team there was a fire in the property around four years ago and that the room the body was found in was badly damaged.
“We certainly don’t think it was there from any time before that fire,” said one source.
A large piece of furniture described as a sideboard had fallen apart in the room and had concealed the body.
Garda sources said there were other people squatting in the property in recent years and that some had been sleeping in the same room where the dead body lay, apparently unaware that the remains were there.
“There seems to have been homeless people in there, and some taking drugs and drinking but even though some of them lived there they didn’t notice a dead body,” said one source.
The remains were taken from the scene after a preliminary examination by a pathologist in the house. A full post mortem has subsequently established the dead man died of natural causes.
However, while foul play has been ruled out gardai say they still need the public’s assistance in trying to establish the man’s identity.
Missing person’s reports and dental records are being examined by gardai in an effort to identify him and DNA testing will also be used.
The deceased was of thin build, between 5ft and 5ft 6 inches, and wearing boots, combat style pants, a green stripped jumper and a Pulsar watch.
Anyone with information about the man’s identity is asked to contact Mountjoy Garda station on (01) 6668600.
