Connecticut Homebuyer Finds 3 Dead Bodies in House Purchased Sight-Unseen

Earlier this summer, Edward Marchion discovered a grisly scene in a home he purchased through a foreclosure auction.

Marchion, a Newington, CT, resident, purchased 7 Stanwich Lane, a four-bedroom, 3-bathroom home in Burlington, CT, for $525,000. The 2,800-square-foot home sits on more than 2 acres and comes with a hot tub, patio, and deck, according to the listing.

The property certainly seemed like a steal—the median listing price in the competitive Connecticut area is $699,900. But Marchion had no idea what he would find hidden inside the home.

After placing the winning bid, Marchion was able to tour the inside of the property and came across an unwelcome sight: three dead bodies.

Connecticut State Police have thus far identified two of the deceased: Sally Anne Cash, 54, and her adult son Brian Cash, 22. Investigators believe the third person in the house may have been Sally Anne's husband, Paul Cash. While their cause of death is still unknown, police do not believe the deaths are connected with a wider pattern of crime.

Sally Ann Cash and Paul Cash were listed as the previous owners of the house, having purchased the home in 2019 for $535,000. At the time, the couple took out a $385,000 mortgage on the property. But court records showed that the couple hadn't made a mortgage payment since December 2024. Foreclosure proceedings against the Cashes began in August 2025.

But now, the discovery of their bodies has called into question the legitimacy of the foreclosure proceedings against them. Authorities have said that it's unclear at this point whether the Cash family died before foreclosure proceedings took place.

If they were already dead when the home was foreclosed upon, the foreclosure would be considered "defective." Instead, Cash family heirs would have the legal standing to pay off any debts and take ownership of the property.

Autopsies on the bodies, which would help determine the time and cause of death, are currently underway.

For his part, Marchion has asked a judge to halt the closing on the property because the title company is unable to issue a title until the timeline of the Cashes' deaths is clarified.

"This buyer's situation is exceptionally rare because his best recourse may come from the foreclosure's own defect rather than the discovery of the bodies themselves," Ilir Salihi, founder of personal finance publication IncomeInsider, tells Realtor.com®.

"If the medical examiner determines the owners died before the foreclosure judgment was entered, the proceeding was likely conducted against defendants who could never have been properly served, and courts in multiple states have ruled that a judgment entered without joining a deceased borrower's estate representative is a legal nullity."

Fatalities and foreclosures

Unbelievably, the discovery of dead bodies during foreclosure sales is not unheard of.

Foxborough, MA, real estate broker Kenny Olson has spent decades flipping foreclosures. He told the Wall Street Journal that he'd found dead bodies in at least two of the dozens of foreclosed homes he'd purchased.

"Deaths go undiscovered in homes more frequently than you might think," says Ben Kramer,
president and cleanup expert at Bio-One, a decontamination and biohazard cleaning company in Springville, UT. "And what happens after paramedics and police depart goes far beyond what the average eye can see."

Kramer tells Realtor.com that if a body has decomposed substantially before being found, there will likely be biological contamination in the flooring, subflooring, and walls. That calls for major remediation.

"This isn’t something that can be handled by typical cleaning crews," he warns. "In fact, anyone entering the room without proper PPE is putting themselves at risk."

How foreclosure auctions work

Foreclosure auctions are a common way for prospective homebuyers to purchase properties at a discount—as long as they're willing to contend with the rules around foreclosures. Foreclosure properties are sold as is, meaning that there won't be any disclosures.

"Foreclosure auctions are a true caveat emptor transaction," says Salihi. "You're buying as is, sight unseen, with no inspedction and no disclosure or warranty."

Typically, foreclosure listings will allow you to see the outside of the property but won't have access to the inside.

If you're interested in dipping your toe into the world of foreclosed properties, you should do your research. That includes doing a title search to see if the property has additional liens against it.

Finding out how long the foreclosure has been vacant can help you anticipate the extent of structural damage you might be facing.

Once you've closed on a foreclosed property, hire a reputable home inspector to thoroughly review the property.

If you encounter something truly horrific during the inspection process, you can attempt to add a contingency to your offer, though they're not standard for foreclosed properties.