Posted on 02/13/2018 11:08:16 AM PST by BenLurkin
Newport News police said they found a man's body inside and that he had been dead for several years.
Officers believe the man was in his late 60s. Other neighbors told WTKR they think the situation is strange. Some thought the man could've possibly been sent to a nursing home or moved away with his family, but instead he was inside his home the entire time.
The neighbor who did the initial welfare check and called police said the man's family is in California and he lived alone taking care of himself.
"He was very secluded. He didn't want to be bothered with a bunch of people," the neighbor said, indicating the last time he saw the resident was at least two years ago.
Police believe there was no foul play involving the man's death. Court documents say the homeowner was 68-year-old Charles Rafkind.
(Excerpt) Read more at ktla.com ...
Maybe he was happy being alone, but still, a sad story that nobody in his family even checked on him.
That’s how I want to go. And living where I do, if my wife dies before me, that is exactly how I might go. Except I think the mail man would get suspicious that I was no longer picking up my mail...
I suspect his bills were paid automatically.
I guess local gov-co didn’t notice property taxes on the property going unpaid.
Or, they were all terminated? Who's going to complain?
Did he have Social Security? Did anyone cash the checks?
Yeah, but junk mail. It’s still a thing.
Yeah, that’s one reason I meantioned the mail. Not only would it tend to accumulate, but there were probably delinquent tax notices and maybe even threats regarding sheriff’s auction.
***I suspect his bills were paid automatically.***
I was thinking the same thing. With everything online - there is less mail and very little face-to-face, or phone connections to ‘live’ people.
If his family had children, grandchildren and in-laws, they may not have been in regular phone contact or even email...believing the other family members would let them know of concerns.
We are a very disconnected society - separated by miles and memories.
This is really sad. It made me wonder......will people ever buy a house where someone inside has been dead for years??? It’s not the same as someone dying surrounded by loved ones. My husband & I had a debate over the, Would you live in a house where someone was murdered?” I said emphatically NO while my husband said yes. Just no way.
“”He was very secluded. He didn’t want to be bothered with a bunch of people,” the neighbor said, indicating the last time he saw the resident was at least two years ago.”
and that’s why and how he wanted to kick the bucket. Probably hated people. At least he wasn’t a drama queen like these suicide clowns who want the attention. He died on his own terms, I guess.
Social Security checks can be automatically deposited - upon request. Same thing with pensions and other income.
He may not have been required to file with the IRS and his property taxes would have been paid by his Mortgage Co. which could have been paid automatically from his bank.
Car tags and driving license may just have terminated for non renewal
A paperless society!!!!
I’m in the same situation. If anyone thought I was going to leave them anything I’m sure they’d be checking on me.
I never considered the postal service so I might not lay there as long as I thought.
I saw a piece recently about the difference between “networks” and “community”.
Once upon a time, we lived in communities — they knew you at the post office and at the corner store and at church. Your neighbors stopped by and people couldn’t just “disappear” without everyone noticing.
Today we just have networks. I post on Free Republic, I have a LinkedIn account, maybe I have a Facebook account. But no one knows me. People are “connected” but are also extremely isolated. If someone disappears it could be months before anyone would even shrug and say, “Haven’t seen him in a while.”
Not good for society.
I bet someone will go to jail over this.
This is why it’s better to do your own landscaping/lawn mowing.
It increases the odds that you’ll drop in the yard and neighbors will more likely notice the increased animal activity.
There are different types of networks. I have group of retirees I worked with. We keep up and share info about each other and at times one or more of us have taken care of someone who is alone and hurting.
I have a business network as a RE broker. vendors and service providers that service my transactions and provide others services to my bitters as needed. I keep the list up-to-date and can make referrals to people in variety of issues and services.
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