Sally and Duane Francom were last seen in late November by a neighbor. But when the new year came and no one had seen or heard from them, a bishop in the area called in a welfare check to American Fork police.

When officers arrived at the home Jan. 3, they attempted to get in contact with the married couple by calling their phone numbers and knocking on the doors, but there was no answer. The curtains and windows were closed, so no one could not see inside. After learning the Francoms’ mail had been piling up, their vehicles had not moved and no one had seen them in quite some time, the officers became concerned and decided to forcefully enter the home through the back door, said Lt. Stuart Fore, Investigations Division commander for the American Fork Police Department.

Inside the home, police found the married homeowners, both 84 years old, deceased. “The bodies of both individuals had entered intermediate-to-advanced stages of decomposition. Investigators also observed some suspicious factors,” a statement by the American Fork Police Department says.

One of those suspicious factors was that the couple’s bodies were found in different rooms in the home. When asked why that circumstance is suspicious, Fore told the Daily Herald, “We don’t rule anything out when we investigate any kind of death investigation. … If something were to happen in the same room, that would be a little bit more understandable. But when they’re found in two different rooms, it just makes us question what happened inside the house a little bit more.”

The official statement explains the other suspicious factors: “Investigators also observed a chair lying on its side and items that appeared to have been knocked off a table in the room in which Sally’s body was located. There were no weapons located in the home that appeared to have been used in this incident.”

Due to the active investigation, Fore said police are not releasing information on where their bodies were located in the house or what the arrangement of their bodies was when found.

Investigators are currently waiting on a report from the Office of the Medical Examiner to determine the time of death, cause of death and any other information that could aid in the direction of the investigation. While Fore said at this time investigators have ruled out foul play by anyone outside of the home, he told the Daily Herald, “If evidence surfaces that leads us in another direction then we’ll obviously follow it.” The statement says there were no signs of forced entry.

“A preliminary examination by the Office of the Medical Examiner (OME) did not reveal any observable indications of traumatic injury to either individual. However, the OME is still conducting its investigation and a final report is not expected to be completed for several weeks, if not months,” the statement said.

The children of the Francoms have been contacted and are now in possession of the home, Fore said. They released the house and turned it over to the children Saturday after evidence was collected, he said.

In response to a question about when the children last saw their parents or attempted to contact them, Fore said to maintain the family’s privacy he could not give out information about their family dynamics.

According to the police statement, “What specifically caused the death of both Sally Francom and Duane Francom is still unknown. This investigation is still highly active and ongoing.” Fore said the investigation could take several weeks to months as investigators gather evidence and information. Just to get the report from the medical examiner could take eight weeks or more, he explained.

Anyone with information regarding the couple’s deaths are asked to contact the American Fork Police Department at 801-763-3020 or Central 911 Dispatch at 801-794-3970.

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