Foul play ruled out as cause of Cork couple Michael and Anna O'Sullivan's deaths
bodies were found in their home in Co Cork
have ruled out foul play, but say it is likely to be Wednesday before they know the causes of their deaths.
The bodies of Michael and Anna O'Sullivan, aged respectively 84 and 79, were discovered at their home in Glounthaune village at around 5pm on Monday by a relative who called to check on them.
The man, a relative of Ms O'Sullivan's, had rung the couple repeatedly on Monday but got no answer, so he travelled from his home in Cork City to check and see if they were all right.
He got no response when he knocked on their door, so he used a key he had to enter the property. He discovered the bodies of the couple lying at the foot of the stairs.
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The man alerted the emergency services, and the couple were pronounced dead at the scene. Gardaí cordoned off the area to allow for a forensic examination by Garda technical experts.
They found no sign of forced entry at the house or anything to suggest the couple had been the victims of foul play. The bodies were removed to hospital on Tuesday.
Gardaí ruled out the possibility of a gas leak at the property and the focus of their inquiry is on the possibility that one, or both, of the deceased fell down the stairs and suffered fatal injuries.
It is understood that the positions of both deceased at the foot of the stairs were consistent with a fall, and officers noted that items stacked and stored on the stairs had also fallen down.
They are hoping, however, that postmortems at Cork University Hospital will establish whether both fell and suffered fatal injuries, or if one may have suffered a medical event.
Gardaí did not request the services of the State Pathologist's Office so the postmortems will be carried out by a hospital pathologist. The results are expected on Wednesday morning.
Gardaí have established that the couple, who were very private, were both alive at around 6pm on Sunday, suggesting they died between Sunday night and Monday afternoon.
Anyone who can assist with information that might help gardaí in preparing a file for an inquest at Cork County Coroner's Court is asked to contact Mayfield Garda station on 021 4558510.
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