body found in apartment › other police matters › january › deadmonton 2007 › deadmonton › edmonton

Police are investigating a body found in a downtown apartment that may have been lying there for nearly a month.

On Tuesday, January 2nd, 2007 tenants called the landlord of an apartment building at 10727 110 Street complaining of a bad smell in a second floor hallway.

"We thought it was garbage," Elizabeth Fratt told the Edmonton Sun, "because we found garbage in the hallway before. There was a bag of garbage with either kitty litter or something in it."

Fratt cleaned the hallway but two days later she got another call – this time the smell was worse and it seemed to be coming from a specific apartment.

Finding out the lock had been changed, Fratt called a locksmith to drill into the lock on the door.

When she opened it she knew it was the smell of death.

"That smell never leaves you," said Fratt. "I've had nightmares before [over it]." Fratt said she had come across a dead body two years ago, at a different apartment building.

Police were called at about 6:30 p.m. on Thursday evening and found the body of a 41-year-old woman lying on the floor. They said she may died after falling and hitting her head, and her body was badly decomposed.

Officers investigating had to use gas masks and they think she may have died on or shortly after December 7th, 2006, citing the most recent newspaper found and dates crossed off on a calendar.

Building tenants said the woman had a limp and walked with cane. The landlord said the woman was a longtime resident, a friendly woman, who stayed home most of the time.

Some suggested she had a problem with drugs, a story police confirmed when they found signs of drug use in the suite.

The woman's next door neighbour, 20-year-old student Ashley Glen, moved into the building December 1st, 2006 and was warned by other tenants that her neighbour was eccentric.

Glen told Global Edmonton she heard constantly yelling coming from the suite in the two weeks leading up to Christmas.

"We noticed it stopped and then didn't think about it after that."

The Edmonton Sun quoted Glen telling them, "It wasn't like a scream or anything. It was this constant yell, then it stopped."

She said the yell didn't sound like the woman was in distress – no call for help, no cries, just a yell.

"Always the same," she said. "The tone never changed. It never sounded like she was scared."

When Glen heard the woman had died she told Global cameras, "Oh my god. I couldn't believe it. Because now I feel horrible, because if something happened then I was right next door."

Police said they believe the woman's death was non-criminal but are awaiting a medical examiner's report and toxicology tests before making a final determination.

deadmonton 2007 - other police matters - body found in apartment