Inset: Thomas Tuttle Sr. (Gregory Funeral Services). Background: Theron Gregory Tuttle appears at a court hearing after being accused of failing to report his father’s death in North Carolina (WSOC/YouTube).
A North Carolina man is accused of leaving his 96-year-old father’s body in their home for several days before notifying authorities on Father’s Day.
Theron Gregory Tuttle, 55, faces a charge of failing to report a death after police discovered Thomas Tuttle Sr. deceased inside the residence they shared in Dallas, North Carolina.
Authorities allege Thomas Tuttle had been dead for days before his son contacted police, according to a courtroom report from local ABC affiliate WSOC. The father and son lived together, and investigators said the younger Tuttle was expected to serve as his father’s caregiver.
“It’s a sad thing for me,” a neighbor told the station. “Very sad to hear about that. He needed some help, a caretaker.”
Theron Tuttle disputed the accusation in an interview with the outlet, saying he dialed 911 immediately after finding his father’s body. He described his father, a Korean War veteran, as someone he loved and who had always supported him.
Investigators have taken the suspect’s phone as part of the case, while a medical examiner is performing an autopsy to determine Thomas Tuttle’s cause of death and help establish a more precise timeline, WSOC reported.
The neighbor added that Thomas Tuttle had lived in the home for decades.
“Never had an ounce of trouble out of him, extremely nice fellow,” the neighbor told WSOC.
According to his obituary, the victim was born in Portsmouth, Ohio, on Nov. 19, 1929.
Cops arrested the suspect on Sunday and took him to the Gaston County Jail, where he has since posted a $15,000 bond. He has a probable cause hearing set for July 15.
