Detective lay dead in his home for months

THE body of an Oldham detective was discovered at his home months after he was last seen alive.

Richard Taylor, (45) of Anchor Street, Oldham, was discovered on January 13 last year after neighbours raised concerns for his welfare.

Police officers who entered the house found letters dated November in the hallway and the 45-year-old’s decomposed body in one of the rooms. There were several empty bottles of cider in another room.

An inquest in Rochdale on Friday heard how Mr Taylor joined Greater Manchester Police in his early 20s and worked as a detective at Oldham CID. The father-of-one had started to drink heavily towards the end of his marriage six years ago, for which he had sought help.

In October, 2010, there was a hearing about future contact with his daughter, which went against him.

Diane Taylor, his sister, told the inquest he was a quiet man who didn’t socialise and had only one true friend. She said she sometimes didn’t hear from him for months at a time, and though perceived to be depressed, had never been officially diagnosed as such. She last saw him in November 2010.

After her last meeting, she went away for 10 days and tried to contact her brother several times, but his phone was off. But she said she had no cause for concern since this wasn’t unusual.

She told the inquest she hadn’t found anyone who had made contact with him from when she last saw him to when he was discovered.

Pathologist Dr Khalid Ahmed said it hadn’t been possible to do a full post-mortem exam or find casue of death, for the body has been too decomposed.

Oldham Coroner Simon Nelson gave an open verdict.

He said: “With Mr Taylor’s medical history and lack of definitive cause of death, the only conclusion I could reach on the balance of the evidence is that I simply and sadly cannot be sure how he came by his death.”