• Neighbors hadn’t seen the couple in about a week. A strong odor was coming from the home, police said.
• The residence belonged to Susan Menard, Woonsocket’s longest-serving mayor.
• Police would not confirm if Menard was one of the deceased.

According to police, two bodies were discovered “in a lengthy stage of decomposition” in the home of former Rhode Island mayor Susan Menard.

A neighbour called police shortly after 4 p.m. Monday to report that he hadn’t seen the elderly couple who lived on Marian Lane in Woonsocket in about a week and that a strong odour was coming from the house, according to Woonsocket Police Chief Thomas Oates.

According to the city’s website, the residence belonged to Susan Menard, Woonsocket’s longest serving mayor who served from 1995 to 2009.

Officers responded to the residence and eventually forced entry. Once inside, they discovered two bodies, one male and one female.

They couldn’t be positively identified, according to Oates, because of their state of decomposition.

The remains have been turned over to the medical examiner for identification and to determine the cause of death.

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“There are no obvious signs of foul play or a struggle,” Oates said. “We are aware that both of these individuals, if they are who we believe they are, had significant medical issues.”

Police would not confirm whether Menard was among the deceased.

Woonsocket, with a population of 43,000, is about 20 miles northwest of Providence.

Lorraine Tessier, a resident of Woonsocket, questioned why the bodies took so long to be discovered.

“I haven’t seen them in a while because my sister usually walks this all the time and on occasion, I’d walk with her around the neighbourhood and I haven’t seen them in a while,” Tessier told Providence’s NBC affiliate WJAR. “Didn’t anyone check in on them?” Grandchildren? Son? “What occurred?”

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