Mystery surrounds the death of a man who was found in a state of decomposition at his home in Chalfont St Peter.

Alberto De La Vega Abarca, 68, was found dead on his bed by police who were called to the sheltered accommodation he lived at in Windmill Road on August 7 this year.

Officers were called at 8.08pm to reports of a sudden death after a smell was noticed.

When police determined the smell was coming from Mr Abarca’s home, they went inside and tragically found him dead, an inquest into his death at Buckinghamshire Coroner’s Court on Tuesday heard.

It is not clear how long he had been there, but he had to be identified using DNA testing with a sample from his daughter.

Toxicology tests were “unremarkable”, senior coroner for Buckinghamshire Crispin Butler said.

A post-mortem was “hindered by marked decomposition”, Dr Stephen Corrigan said.

There were no obvious signs of trauma, but equally it could not be ruled out - neither could natural causes.

Dr Corrigan said the cause of death was unascertained but he could find nothing that indicated anything suspicious.

Mr Butler recorded an open conclusion. He said: “He was found deceased in a state of decomposition on August 7 laying on his bed. He was identified by DNA sampling. There is no cause of death because of his condition.”