A foreclosure auction in Burlington, Connecticut, took a grim turn when the winning bidder discovered three bodies inside the property he had purchased sight unseen. Edward Marchion placed a winning bid of $525,000 in June for the Cape Cod-style home, which was valued at $650,000. The terms of the foreclosure sale stipulated that bidders could not inspect the interior before the auction.
Upon entering the 2,800-square-foot home situated on two acres for the first time, Marchion found skeletal remains. Police have identified two of the deceased as Sally Anne Cash, who would have been 54, and her son Brian, who would have turned 23. The third body is undergoing DNA testing for identification. Cash had purchased the home in 2019 with her husband, Paul.
The cause of death and the duration the bodies remained undiscovered are not yet clear. Authorities have stated that the deaths are isolated, no crime is suspected, and there is no ongoing threat to the public. Carbon monoxide poisoning has also been ruled out by tests.
Court records indicate the previous owners, the Cashes, stopped making their approximately $3,000 monthly mortgage payments in late 2024. This led to a foreclosure complaint filed by their bank in August 2025, to which the Cashes did not respond. The court-appointed lawyer overseeing the auction, Christopher Thogmartin, initially believed the property had been abandoned.
However, shortly before the auction, "keep out" and "owner occupied" signs mysteriously appeared on the lawn. Approximately 20 bidders participated in the auction, with all inspecting the property only from the exterior. Under foreclosure proceedings, occupants are legally permitted to remain in their homes and are not required to grant interior access before a public auction.
Marchion paid a deposit of $82,000 following his winning bid. He has since asked a court to delay the closing on the home until the police investigation is concluded. Residents in the vicinity expressed shock, with one neighbor, Michael NeJaime, telling The Wall Street Journal that he was unsure if he would want the house under the circumstances.