Police name house death couple

Police have named a couple who were found dead at their home after their nine-year-old daughter dialled 999 when she could not wake them.

Suzanne Van Hagen, 34, and John Worton, 37, were pronounced dead by paramedics called to a house in Frankley, Birmingham.

Speaking outside the property in Miranda Close, Detective Chief Inspector Wayne Jones said officers had found no sign of major trauma on the bodies and were treating the deaths as "unexplained".

Although their deaths are not being treated as suspicious at this stage, the staffing and resources of a murder inquiry have been allocated to the investigation.

Mr Jones said: "There is no obvious sign of major trauma and we await the outcome of the post-mortem to determine the cause of death."

The nine-year-old girl, who thought her parents were asleep, is being cared for by relatives and specially trained officers, he said.

It is understood the youngster was taken to hospital for precautionary checks after the emergency services were called to the scene.

Mr Jones said detectives were examining whether the deaths may be linked to carbon monoxide poisoning, and had no information to suggest they could be drug-related.

The property has been secured as forensic experts examine the scene for evidence; a post-mortem examination will take place in due course in an effort to shed light on the cause of their deaths.