She discovered his body while searching for Christmas decorations

A US woman discovered her husband's mummified body in a wardrobe eight months after she reported him missing.

On April 27, 2022, 53-year-old Richard Maedge was reported missing by his wife, Jennifer. Police have since searched their home in Troy, Illinois, twice as part of the investigation into his disappearance.

They reported that the property was a “hoarder's home” and smelled “like sewerage,” but found no sign of Richard.

Then, on December 11 of that year, Jennifer discovered her husband's body hanging in a hidden storage unit in a bedroom closet.

She had been looking for Christmas decorations when she made the heartbreaking discovery.

A coroner's report released last month said Richard was believed to have died by suicide and his body had become mummified after going through stages of decomposition.

The police coroner explained to local news that the mummified body did not emit an odor, which may have been one of the reasons he was not found in the house.

After Richard called Jennifer to say he was leaving get off work early, Jennifer reported Richard missing. But when she returned, he was nowhere to be seen, even though his car was parked outside and his keys and wallet were inside the house.

Police conducted an initial search of the property but found no trace of Richard or any clues to his whereabouts.

Some time after the first search, Jennifer said the stench in her home was still there, and police searched the house again.

“I decided to put up the Christmas tree and I was looking for a bag of Christmas decorations and that's when I found him,” Jennifer told the Belleville Press-Democrat about how she found her husband.

Police said they now suspect foul play in Richard's death, with the coroner's report saying “a post-mortem examination found no injuries and no evidence of anything sinister in Mr Mechi's death.”

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