Police: Man dead in recliner 'a couple days'

A NORTHEAST Philadelphia man left out some vital information when he called 9-1-1 at 6 a.m. yesterday to report that his mother was experiencing chest pains.

As paramedics were taking the 78-year-old woman out of the Kirkwood Road home on a stretcher, he mentioned that his pop was lounging in a recliner.

Dead. For awhile now.

"When the rescue guys are taking mom out, he says, 'Can you take my dad with you?' " said a source in Northeast Detectives.

The 84-year-old father, who hasn't been identified, apparently spent Christmas in the recliner, but likely died on Christmas Eve.

"He was dead for a couple days," the source said.

Police preliminarily believe that he died of natural causes. His wife was taken to the hospital for treatment of chest pains.

The son, who is about 60, might have had a brain injury that affected his mental capacity, police said.

Officer Tanya Little, a police spokeswoman, said that the Medical Examiner's Office would rule on the cause of death.

No foul play was suspected as of yesterday.