According to the Gangbuk-gu Office and Mayor Park, the man, in his 40s, was disabled and had been living alone. He also was dependent on alcohol. He had family members living just a few minutes away, but they reportedly had not noticed anything unusual before being contacted by authorities, according to Park Gyum-soo, the mayor of the district.

Police said the man's house was filled with garbage, and there were some 10 soju bottles on the floor.

The discovery of the man’s body led to the cancellation of a press tour of Park’s current residence and neighborhood, which had been scheduled for Wednesday afternoon. A press meeting in Samyang-dong, where Park is currently residing, was still held as scheduled, where Park spoke on the death of the man.

“I’ve been informed that he had disabilities and had never been married. For whatever reason, it seems like the dead had been living a life in utter isolation, disconnected from everyone including his family,” he told reporters. 

“In Japan, I hear that unattended deaths don’t only occur to those who are elderly. I feel like I’ve been assigned another task (as mayor), as such lonely deaths in our city should not be happening.”

According to a 2016 study by the Seoul Welfare Foundation, unattended deaths tend to occur in low-quality living accommodations, such as roof-top dwellings where mayor Park's currently and temporarily staying. 

Among other accomodations where unattended deaths commonly take place are goshiwon (very tiny rooms reminiscent of prison cells) and jjokbang (very small rooms of a size usually 3.5 to 5 qm), that do not meet adequate housing standards under international human rights law.

The study also found that many of the victims had been not speaking to any of their family members while alive. A lot of them had been divorced and unemployed.  

The issue of unattended deaths in Samyang-dong district, where the mayor is currently residing, was in fact brought up to him lastweek, when he spoke with some of the residents.