Response to concern for welfare report - Devon and Cornwall Police, December 2017

At 4.17pm on 25 December 2017, a woman contacted Devon and Cornwall Police to report that she had not seen her neighbour for three or four days, and was concerned for her welfare. She said that the woman was not answering her door or phone, and had stopped taking medication prescribed for certain mental health issues.

Officers went to the woman’s home. They considered that the evidence available to them was not sufficient to justify gaining entry to the premises. Officers took a number of additional steps to ascertain the woman’s whereabouts, including calls to the local hospital and mental health unit, efforts to trace and/or contact family members, and repeated calls to the woman’s mobile phone.

Officers went back to the woman’s at 9.22pm. On this occasion, they were able to hear her phone ringing from inside the property. They also located and spoke with the woman’s sister, who expressed concern for her welfare. The officers forced entry to the address at 9.55pm, and found the woman dead inside.

Investigators obtained accounts from the officers involved, reviewed call logs and recordings, and considered relevant national and local policies and procedures.

The exact time of the woman’s death was not established. However, the evidence did not appear to indicate that she was alive at the time her neighbour called the police. We were therefore of the opinion that Devon and Cornwall Police did not cause or contribute to her death.

During the investigation, there was no indication any police officer may have committed a criminal offence, or behaved in a manner that would justify the bringing of disciplinary proceedings.