puffpattiduke
11-22-2006, 11:01 AM
Woman reports husband's death ... 3 years later
BY MATTHEW NESTEL
Special to Newsday
November 21, 2006, 11:07 PM EST
A 73-year-old Bay Ridge woman walked into the 68th Precinct Tuesday to report for the first time that her husband had died three years ago -- and that his body had remained in the couple's Bay Ridge Parkway home ever since.
Joanne Iverson's report came only after her estranged son, Paul, visited the home in a bid to make amends and rekindle a relationship with his parents and made the shocking discovery that his father, Frank Iverson, a painter who was about 73 years old, was dead. Joanne Iverson said her husband died of natural causes.
Tuesday, both police who rushed to the scene to find a body covered in sheets at the home and neighbors who said they rarely heard much from the reclusive couple were asking why Joanne Iverson had never reported the death.
Police sources said they are investigating whether Joanne Iverson kept her husband's death a secret to continue to collect and cash his Social Security checks.
"I can't seem to get around this," said Carole Clements, a 26-year-resident of the building, who lives upstairs from the Iversons. "There must have been a reason. Only she knows. Sometimes people can't let go. Could that be the reason?"
Sources said police found the home where Joanne Iverson had lived for decades overrun with dirty clothes and items covering the floor, a consequence, they said, of her penchant for collecting things.
She had wire hangers stuffed in boxes "as far as you could see," said one neighbor, and bags of clothes "everywhere."
Neighbors knew that the couple, who had two sons, Paul and Ralph, had been estranged from each other for some time, so the neighbors said they didn't notice Frank Iverson's extended absence.
"It's a high traffic ... and nobody noticed," said Vicky Giasemis, 39, a seven-year resident who said Joanne Iverson was well known in the community for sitting on the porch and walking along the street.
"She would walk up and down the block," Giasemis added. "Everybody knows her. She's like the neighborhood therapist. She's adorable. I'm in shock. She's a lovely, lovely lady."
Vincent Clements, Carole Clements' husband, said he noticed a smell coming from the apartment three or four years ago, but said it went away after about five months.
A building superintendent sprayed the hallways to mask the smell in the interim, unaware of its source.
"I used to see three times a week," Vincent Clements said. "He'd tell me that he had a paint job. I used to tell my wife that it was strange that I didn't see him anymore."
Staff writers Zachary R. Dowdy and Rocco Parascandola contributed to this story.
BY MATTHEW NESTEL
Special to Newsday
November 21, 2006, 11:07 PM EST
A 73-year-old Bay Ridge woman walked into the 68th Precinct Tuesday to report for the first time that her husband had died three years ago -- and that his body had remained in the couple's Bay Ridge Parkway home ever since.
Joanne Iverson's report came only after her estranged son, Paul, visited the home in a bid to make amends and rekindle a relationship with his parents and made the shocking discovery that his father, Frank Iverson, a painter who was about 73 years old, was dead. Joanne Iverson said her husband died of natural causes.
Tuesday, both police who rushed to the scene to find a body covered in sheets at the home and neighbors who said they rarely heard much from the reclusive couple were asking why Joanne Iverson had never reported the death.
Police sources said they are investigating whether Joanne Iverson kept her husband's death a secret to continue to collect and cash his Social Security checks.
"I can't seem to get around this," said Carole Clements, a 26-year-resident of the building, who lives upstairs from the Iversons. "There must have been a reason. Only she knows. Sometimes people can't let go. Could that be the reason?"
Sources said police found the home where Joanne Iverson had lived for decades overrun with dirty clothes and items covering the floor, a consequence, they said, of her penchant for collecting things.
She had wire hangers stuffed in boxes "as far as you could see," said one neighbor, and bags of clothes "everywhere."
Neighbors knew that the couple, who had two sons, Paul and Ralph, had been estranged from each other for some time, so the neighbors said they didn't notice Frank Iverson's extended absence.
"It's a high traffic ... and nobody noticed," said Vicky Giasemis, 39, a seven-year resident who said Joanne Iverson was well known in the community for sitting on the porch and walking along the street.
"She would walk up and down the block," Giasemis added. "Everybody knows her. She's like the neighborhood therapist. She's adorable. I'm in shock. She's a lovely, lovely lady."
Vincent Clements, Carole Clements' husband, said he noticed a smell coming from the apartment three or four years ago, but said it went away after about five months.
A building superintendent sprayed the hallways to mask the smell in the interim, unaware of its source.
"I used to see three times a week," Vincent Clements said. "He'd tell me that he had a paint job. I used to tell my wife that it was strange that I didn't see him anymore."
Staff writers Zachary R. Dowdy and Rocco Parascandola contributed to this story.