A 70-year-old woman’s body was found at home two years after her alleged death. According to The Guardian, Marinella Beretta lived alone at her home in Prestino near Lake Como in the northern area of Italy. She was not seen by her neighbors living nearby “for at least two and a half years,” according to Agence France-Presse. They assumed that Beretta had moved away when the Covid-19 pandemic first hit the country.
Per Agence France-Presse in Rome, the elderly woman’s body was found in a “mummified” state, last week. It was revealed that her corpse was sitting in a chair at a table in the living room. Her death was discovered after the Como fire brigade arrived at the home after concerned residents reported that a tree had fallen in her garden as a result of overgrown vegetation, Como City Hall press officer Francesca Manfredi told CNN.
As the circumstances surrounding her demise are still being investigated, Manfredi told the outlet that Beretta’s cause of death remains unknown at the moment. That being said, the medical examiner was able to determine that the elderly woman died at some point around the end of 2019, “based on the extent of decomposition.” No evidence of foul play has been discovered at the scene. Currently, officials are trying to find out if Beretta had any serving family members to give them the news but no one has come forward yet.
If the death of a 70-year-old woman went unnoticed for 2 years then it means that Loneliness is a serious problem in modern societies.
https://t.co/oUpkU00bkg— 🇹🇷 Umut Acar (@AcarUmut) February 9, 2022
Beretta is also not on the list for assistance from local social services. Manfredi shared that Beretta’s body is currently in the morgue and a funeral date is yet to be set. Como Mayor Mario Landriscina has since invited the residents of the area to attend the woman’s funeral which will be funded by the local government. “I will try to be there and I invite the city to be present,” said Landriscina, according to the outlet. “This is the moment to be together, and even if this woman had no relatives, we could become her relatives.”
Meanwhile, Italy’s minister for family and equal opportunities, Elena Bonetti, has mourned Beretta’s solitary death. “What happened to Marinella Beretta in Como, the forgotten loneliness, hurts our consciences,” she shared. “Remembering her life is the duty of a community that wants to remain united.” The minister added, “Taking care of each other is the experience of families, institutions, of our being citizens. No one should be alone.”
Representative cover image source: Getty | Photo by pawel.gaul
