When staff at a solicitors' firm kept noticing an unpleasant odour and an infestation of flies at their office, they called in pest control to get rid of what they thought was a pigeon.
However, the pest control workers found something they certainly weren't expecting - the decomposing corpse of a man wedged in a chimney.
The macabre discovery occurred in an unused part of the Victorian building at Moody and Woolley Solicitors in Derby city centre last week.
The body was identified as that of 42-year-old Kevin Gough, a serial burglar who had obviously died an unpleasant death after becoming wedged in the chimney when climbing down it to burgle the building. It is believed that the corpse had been in the chimney for several weeks.
The chimney leads to the first floor where Mr Gough's body was found. His body was found suspended two feet above the hearth
It has been revealed that Gough, who had no permanent address, has a string of previous convictions for targeting businesses.
In 2010, he was jailed for more than two years at Derby Crown Court after admitting two counts of commercial burglary and asking for another nine to be taken into account.
The firm's Senior partner Julie Marson described the incident as an 'awful tragedy'.
She said: 'We thought it may have been a pigeon so we got a pest control guy to come.
'That's when we realised it looked like it might be a human body.
'That's when we called the police. A couple of officers came round and they confirmed it was a body.
'To think that poor chap could have been there for days. It's an awful thought. We just hope he passed away quickly.
The quaint Victorian building in Derby, where the body of a burglar has been found in a disused chimney. Staff at Moody & Wooley Solicitors thought a pigeon was stuck in the chimney and called pest control to have the blockage removed
'You wouldn't wish this on your worst enemy.'
A spokesman for Derbyshire Police said the death was currently being treated as ‘unexplained’.
He added: 'Police said forensic investigations were on-going at the scene, and they were keeping an open mind about the find.'
During his 2010 hearing, Gough said he had broken into a sandwich shop and a takeway on the same day a month before he was sentenced, stealing cash and causing hundreds of pounds' worth of damage.
A number of firms in the historic part of Derby city centre where Moody & Woolley's office is located have been targeted in recent weeks.
Staff at the firm, Moody and Woolley, were said to be in 'shock'.
Grim: An investigation has been launched to identify the man who has been found. Police will then try to locate his relative
Discovery: It is thought the body had been in the chimney for several weeks. The business is located in Derby city centre, pictured
Read more: Dead body of serial burglar found in CHIMNEY of a solicitors firm in city centre | Mail Online
However, the pest control workers found something they certainly weren't expecting - the decomposing corpse of a man wedged in a chimney.
The macabre discovery occurred in an unused part of the Victorian building at Moody and Woolley Solicitors in Derby city centre last week.
The body was identified as that of 42-year-old Kevin Gough, a serial burglar who had obviously died an unpleasant death after becoming wedged in the chimney when climbing down it to burgle the building. It is believed that the corpse had been in the chimney for several weeks.
The chimney leads to the first floor where Mr Gough's body was found. His body was found suspended two feet above the hearth
It has been revealed that Gough, who had no permanent address, has a string of previous convictions for targeting businesses.
In 2010, he was jailed for more than two years at Derby Crown Court after admitting two counts of commercial burglary and asking for another nine to be taken into account.
The firm's Senior partner Julie Marson described the incident as an 'awful tragedy'.
She said: 'We thought it may have been a pigeon so we got a pest control guy to come.
'That's when we realised it looked like it might be a human body.
'That's when we called the police. A couple of officers came round and they confirmed it was a body.
'To think that poor chap could have been there for days. It's an awful thought. We just hope he passed away quickly.
The quaint Victorian building in Derby, where the body of a burglar has been found in a disused chimney. Staff at Moody & Wooley Solicitors thought a pigeon was stuck in the chimney and called pest control to have the blockage removed
'You wouldn't wish this on your worst enemy.'
A spokesman for Derbyshire Police said the death was currently being treated as ‘unexplained’.
He added: 'Police said forensic investigations were on-going at the scene, and they were keeping an open mind about the find.'
During his 2010 hearing, Gough said he had broken into a sandwich shop and a takeway on the same day a month before he was sentenced, stealing cash and causing hundreds of pounds' worth of damage.
A number of firms in the historic part of Derby city centre where Moody & Woolley's office is located have been targeted in recent weeks.
Staff at the firm, Moody and Woolley, were said to be in 'shock'.
Grim: An investigation has been launched to identify the man who has been found. Police will then try to locate his relative
Discovery: It is thought the body had been in the chimney for several weeks. The business is located in Derby city centre, pictured
Read more: Dead body of serial burglar found in CHIMNEY of a solicitors firm in city centre | Mail Online
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