272-kg mummified body of man dead for 9 months found in woman's house in New Orleans

A woman in New Orleans has been found to be living with the dead body of her son for nine months. She is now under investigation after the police found the mummified remains that weigh 272 kg. The woman has been identified as Barbara Hainsworth, a "mentally disabled elderly woman", as per records of the city's Healthy Homes Administration.

The house was surrounded by filth and mounds of garbage, attracting rats and other vermin. People had made multiple complaints to the city about the house, according to WDSU. Later, a member of the New Orleans Health Department reached out to Code Enforcement and informed them about the condition of the house. When investigators with the City of New Orleans reached the house to investigate, they found a dead male body on Thursday, May 15.

Also Read: South Carolina police arrest parents after seeing 'large rat eating the child'

"A Code Enforcement investigator was immediately dispatched to the property. DCE’s investigation revealed horrific conditions, including the remains of a mummified male body and evidence of extreme hoarding conditions, along with mounds of trash in and around the property,” a statement read.

House has been deemed a hazard, woman was fined $6,125

Hainsworth is a former doctor who stopped practising 10 years ago after her medical license was revoked. The New Orleans Police Department was called to the house, where they enquired about the human remains in her house. She informed them that it was her son who had "died about nine months ago."

The name of her son was not released, who is said to have passed away following multiple medical conditions.

Meanwhile, the house has been deemed a health hazard by code enforcement investigators. However, it does not plan on demolishing it and has instead ordered an assessment and repairs.

"DCE informed its demolition contractor to be on standby to perform an assessment to clean up and remove the trash and seal the hole in the bathroom floor. The property was also scheduled to be boarded by the New Orleans Police Department (NOPD),” it said in a statement.

Hainsworth had earlier been fined $6,125 for the house's horrible condition.