A specialist team of investigators is now looking into the death of an Aberdeen pensioner whose body lay undiscovered in her home for up to 12 years.
Christina Malley, 88, was found on February 25 at an address in Cove’s Allison Close.
The discovery of Mrs Malley’s body was only made after she failed to show up for a Covid-19 vaccination. When asked where she was, her husband said she was abroad.
An initial police investigation into the circumstances determined that her death was not being treated as suspicious.
Now the Scottish Fatalities Investigation Unit (SFIU) is directing the investigation into the case.
Her cause of death is still unknown, despite a post mortem examination being carried out.
Wider investigation into death finished
The police investigation into Mrs Malley’s death has been concluded and a report has been submitted to the Procurator Fiscal.
A spokeswoman for the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) said: “The Procurator Fiscal has received a report in connection with the death of an 88-year-old woman.
“The investigation into the death, under the direction of Scottish Fatalities Investigation Unit (SFIU), is ongoing and the family will continue to be kept updated in relation to any significant developments.”
A Police Scotland spokeswoman said: “The investigation in relation to the circumstances surrounding the death of the woman has concluded and her death is not being treated as suspicious.
“No person has been arrested or charged in connection with this investigation.”
What does the SFIU do?
The Scottish Fatalities Investigation Unit considers deaths that are reported to COPFS because they need further explanation.
The specialist staff in the unit, along with those in the COPFS Health and Safety Division, help to establish the cause of deaths.
COPFS recently increased resources available to the SFIU, as part of a bid to reduce the time needed to complete complex death investigations, and to improve the provision of information to families and next of kin.
Case was described as ‘heartbreaking’
The certificate says that Mrs Malley, who was born in December 1932, was found dead on February 25, and that she was a retired restaurant waitress.
Forensics officers carried out a thorough examination of the property where her body was discovered and tests were carried out to determine how she passed away.
The case was described as “heartbreaking” by local and national politicians.
Scottish Conservative north-east MSP, Liam Kerr, had called for a national loneliness awareness campaign and had raised the issue in the Scottish Parliament.
And First Minister Nicola Sturgeon backed calls for a nationwide loneliness campaign to help combat social isolation. She said the government needs to look at how it “supports people to reconnect” as Scotland emerges from the pandemic.