In June 2025, Edward Marchion placed the winning bid on a foreclosure auction for a home in Connecticut. The price was $525,000, a seemingly attractive deal in one of the country’s most competitive housing markets, where similar properties in the area were listing for $650,000 to $699,000.
There was one catch. Foreclosure auctions are sold as is, sight unseen. Bidders don’t get to tour the inside beforehand. You place your bid, and if you win, you find out what you’ve bought.
Marchion found out when he was finally allowed inside.
Three bodies were discovered in the home. Connecticut State Police identified two of them as Sally Anne Cash, 54, and her adult son Brian Cash, 22. Investigators believe the third body may be that of Sally Anne’s husband, Paul Cash, who along with his wife had purchased the property in 2019 for $535,000. DNA testing is still ongoing to confirm his identity.
The cause of death for all three remains unknown. Police say they do not believe the deaths are connected to any wider pattern of crime and are treating them as an isolated incident. It is also not yet known how long the bodies had been in the home before Marchion’s discovery.
Foreclosure experts note that finding bodies in auction properties, while rare, is not unheard of. When a home goes into foreclosure and sits vacant, sometimes the circumstances that led to that vacancy are more complicated than simple financial hardship. Buyers who bid sight unseen accept that risk as part of the transaction.
