The Royal Canadian Mounted Police expected to work well into the night Tuesday as officers with the major crime and forensic identification units tried to piece together what happened to an elderly couple found dead in their Cox’s Cove home earlier in the day.
The man and woman, believed to be in their 80s, were found in their house located on Central Street in the small community on the north shore of the Bay of Islands.
Sgt. Terry Foster of the Corner Brook detachment confirmed the man and woman were married and said they were found by a family member.
Foster said the call for police assistance was received at about 1 p.m. and officers from Corner Brook and Deer Lake responded.
He said details provided at the time were very vague and while en route officers were unable to get any more information. The RCMP was advised the local fire department had responded to the home and paramedics were also on site.
When police arrived the paramedics were working on the man, but Foster said it is believed both the man and woman were dead at the time they were found.
Foster couldn’t comment on how the couple died. He said with two deceased in a home it does raise some suspicion, but there was no reason for the public to be alarmed.
“There’s no indication at this time that anybody from outside the residence inflicted any harm whatsoever on these people.”
Foster said the initial investigation has shown there were no signs of a physical altercation or struggle inside the home and no signs of anyone being in distress.
He said major crime and forensic identification officers were examining the residence and collecting as much evidence as possible in order to determine what transpired. Another member of the forensic identification section from Grand Falls was expected to join the investigation later in the evening.
The office of the chief medical examiner will also play a lead role in the investigation.
Foster said the bodies of the couple would not be removed until the officers had completed their investigation.
While some family members live next door to the couple, Foster said the last known contact with them was at 8 p.m. Sunday and he could not comment on how long they may have been dead.
The husband and wife were the only occupants of the home.
Police wouldn’t comment on the possibility of foul play within the residence.
For all the police activity on the street, the scene was quiet. People who were believed to be family members milled around a residence next door to the deceased couple’s home.
The Western Star
