Skeleton remains of 59 year old man and that of his dog found in his apartment 8 years after he died

A retired baker lay dead in his flat for eight years until his body was discovered by chance during a fire in his apartment block in Germany.

The skeletal remains of Heinz H, who died aged 59, were found alongside the dead body of his dog who is thought to have starved to death in the flat in Senden, western Germany.

Firefighters broke into the flat and made the grim discovery while they were evacuating the apartment block during a blaze in the cellar, according to Bild.

Upon further investigation it emerged that the man’s postbox had been overflowing for eight years and his decaying car was still parked outside.

He was last seen alive in 2011.

The block of flats in Senden, western Germany, where the dead body of a retired baker lay unnoticed in his flat for eight years until it was finally discovered by firemen

Heinz H’s car, parked outside the building, was turning green and had flat tyres. His postbox was also overflowing after not being opened for eight years.
One neighbour, Angelika Havener, said she had approached various authorities after noticing a strange smell.

However, neither the manager of the property nor the police agreed that it smelled of a dead body, she said.

Ms Havener thought her neighbour had an adult son but she failed to make contact with him, she said.

Another neighbour had reassured her that Heinz, who broke up with his wife many years ago, was probably staying with a friend elsewhere.

‘He didn’t deserve to way the die he did,’ Ms Havener said.

She went on: ‘He was a nice guy, a bit of a loner. He told me he left his job as a baker because he had an allergy to flour dust.

One neighbour, Angelika Havener, said she had approached various authorities after noticing a strange smell but nothing was done

A cordoned-off part of the apartment block building where a fire broke out last month, leading to the inadvertent discovery of the 59-year-old’s dead body
‘I realised he wasn’t cooking for himself, so sometimes I used to bring him food I had cooked. He was a really nice neighbour.’

At some stage, a mystery friend started walking the dog, but after a while there was no more sign of either Heinz or his pet, Ms Havener said.

The Seat car, which had flat tyres and had started to turn green, sat unnoticed in the car park outside.

Heinz’s body was finally found when a fire broke out at the flat on September 20 and firemen went door-to-door to take residents to safety.

When there was no answer from Heinz’s flat, they broke in and found him and his dog dead.

His body is now being examined and police are investigating the case.