Dorcol residents lived next to a corpse: Jovan died 5 years ago, relatives and neighbors didn't know

90-year-old Jovan Bozinovi died five years ago alone in his apartment in downtown Belgrade, and none of his neighbors and relatives knew about it. No one was visiting him, nor did anyone inquire about him.

Jovan's bones were found in the apartment by accident when workers broke down the door because they had to check installations in the building.

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A sad and terrible sight was discovered in a building in Visokog Stevana Street on Dorcol. The building's residents hired workers to check pipes in the building and they went from apartment to apartment, at one point reaching Jovan's door.

Photo illustration: Profimedia/Sciencephoto RM

"They knocked, but no one responded. The residents told them they were free to break down the door because no one had seen the owner of the apartment for years, and they were convinced the apartment was empty and abandoned. However, when the workers entered the apartment, they were in for a shock! The apartment was full of garbage, dust and cobwebs, and there was a human skeleton in one room," says a source with knowledge of this case.

The police were immediately notified, who later transported the remains of the body to the Forensic Institute to determine, at least approximately, the time of death.

"What's strange, first of all, is that there was no smell of a decaying corpse in the building. All the more stranger is that for so many years no one knew that Jovan was dead in his apartment. People have been living next door to a dead neighbor for almost five years and no one found it appropriate to check on him. That's really sad," the source said.

Jovan's neighbor confirmed that there was no stench of a rotting corpse at all in the building, something that is otherwise very strong and felt at a great distance.

"None of the tenants have seen him in years. I last met him, as I recall, almost five years ago. He was coming back from Bajloni's Market, where he would sell used items that he found in dumpsters," says a neighbor.

According to him, Jovan lived in the apartment with his wife Mira, and the couple had no children.

Photo: Telegraf

"They had fallen out with the family and didn't keep in touch. They were nice and decent people, but after Mira died, Jovan changed completely. He became withdrawn, no longer said hello to anyone, and began to bring some waste and trash to his apartment. He acted strange, he became a completely different man," said the neighbor.

Another neighbor of Jovan's is also shocked by the horrific discovery in the apartment on the top floor.

"It really never occurred to me that he was dead. I was convinced that the apartment was abandoned, that Jovan had moved somewhere and died there. Absolutely no stench of rot was felt in front of his door, let alone in other parts of the building, which is very strange. I am very sorry for about grandpa Jova (Jovan), that he had such fate," says this neighbor, N.S.

Mailbox full of bills

The deceased old man's mailbox is packed with electricity, telephone and utilities bills. Electricity was probably turned off in the meantime due to unpaid bills, but it remains a mystery what happened with the accumulated debt for other expenses, such as taxes and utilities. The occupants of the building find it very strange that bailiffs never showed up at Jovan's door during all these years, so they assume that someone may have been paying the bills from time to time without inquiring about Jovan.

The old man's relatives, who had not been in touch with him for years before his death, will in all likelihood now inquire about the possibility of inheriting his apartment.

(Telegraf.rs/Informer)