A woman went missing for months before police discovered her “mummified” remains at her boyfriend and brother’s Montreal home.
According to Canadian news outlet CityNews, Alasie Tukkiapik, 41, was reported missing in March 2023. She was said to be dating a man named “Frank,” later identified as Francesco Sansalone, 63, who lived with his brother Nicodemo Sansalone, 61. While many people came to the Sansalone’s door looking for Tukkiapik, prosecutors said the brothers refused to let them in.
When police arrived in the neighborhood on September 18, 2023, Nicodemo Sansalone emerged from his home and joined the conversation. According to courtroom reports from the Montreal Gazette, he told an officer, “She is on the couch. She’s been laying on the couch for the past six months.
When the Sansalone brothers appeared in a Montreal courtroom on Wednesday to enter their plea, prosecutor Simon Lapierre read aloud a joint statement of facts pertaining to the case. In the statement, Lapierre described what happened when the officers, led by Nicodemo Sansalone, entered the brothers’ home, saying, “Immediately upon entering, the officers noticed the strong smell of a dead body.” The house was in complete disarray and unsanitary conditions.”
As the officers entered, “they noticed a human silhouette on the couch beneath a blanket with its feet sticking out.” Under the blanket, the officers discovered Mrs. Tukkiapik’s mummified corpse.
Nicodemo Sansalone reportedly told officers, “I should have called to let you know. But my brother Frank didn’t want me to call you, so he ran away a few weeks ago,” adding, “He left me alone with her.”
He also reportedly gave officers the date Tukkiapik died: February 12, 2023. As he was being arrested, he said, “I wish I could go back in time.”
Francesco Sansalone was eventually apprehended by police and arrested several weeks later. According to Lapierre, Francesco Sansalone had been dating Tukkiapik for several years when he noticed she started bleeding from her buttocks while they were staying at a motel, but he dismissed it as a stress reaction.
According to prosecutors, when the couple returned to their Sansalone home, Tukkiapik deteriorated but refused to be taken to the hospital. She eventually died, and the brothers moved her body to the living room couch, where she stayed for the next six months.
Prosecutors claimed they tried to mask the smell of decay with air freshener.
Tukkiapik’s autopsy revealed no specific cause of death due to the condition of her body. However, there was no evidence that a traumatic injury or substance could have been the cause of death.
After a months-long delay, both brothers pleaded guilty to charges relating to the indignity caused to Tukkiapik’s body and failure to notify authorities of her death.