Dead Women Bodies Discovered In House

A woman not seen by neighbours for more than 30 years has been found dead at her home in Oxford, with the body of her daughter nearby.

Police broke into the terraced property after reports of a pungent smell and initially recovered the body of daughter Caroline Jessett.

She is thought to have been dead for several months.

However, officers were unable to go upstairs amid fears the property could collapse and engineers spent a week shoring up the walls.

When police returned yesterday, they discovered the body of mother Pauline Jessett, in her 70s, in an upstairs room.

Sources suspect she may have been dead for months, or even years.

Post-mortem examinations are being carried out and the deaths are so far unexplained.

Neighbours, in Cowley Road, Littlemore, south Oxford, described both women as reclusive and some said they had not seen Pauline Jessett for 30 years.

They told journalists that the curtains at the home were always drawn and the Jessetts refused to answer calls at the front door.

One neighbour, who did not want to be named, told reporters she had not seen Pauline since the 1980s when her husband had died.

Caroline had not been spotted for at least six months and also rarely ventured out, the neighbour added.

Photographs at the property revealed an overgrown garden and furniture piled up inside the house.

Investigating officer Detective Inspector John Turner said: "There continues to be nothing at this stage to suggest these deaths are suspicious.

"Investigations are now being carried out to determine the circumstances."