A well-regarded mother’s body was discovered in a toilet cubicle at the Gurkha Buffet Restaurant, Hotel and Bar in Blackpool, Lancashire, three days after she had entered. Sabrina Lyttle, 47, entered the restaurant on November 28 to use the facilities but wasn’t found until November 30.
As police say her death is not being treated as suspicious, autopsy results are awaited to ascertain the cause of death. The establishment, which offers an array of Chinese, Thai, and Indian cuisine, has broken its silence following the incident, reports the Mirror.
A representative for The Gurkha Restaurant, Hotel and Bar released a statement noting: “On Thursday 28th November 2024 at 8.34pm, a non-customer member of the public entered the premises and asked to use the toilets.
“As the restaurant had already closed for the evening, directions to the pub toilets, which are in a separate area of the building, were given. Staff in the pub provided further directions to the general pub toilets and did not issue access to the disabled toilet.”
Furthermore, the spokesperson added, “Access to the separate and locked disabled toilet is gained via staff as the facility cannot be opened with a RADAR key. The male and female toilets are deep-cleaned every morning and checked throughout the day, with the disabled toilet checked after every authorised use and cleaned as required, due to infrequent use.
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“Access to the disabled toilet was not requested until Friday evening around 10pm. The staff with the assistance of other helpful pub customers were unable to unlock the door and as access had not been granted for the past 24 hours, it was reported as a maintenance issue to management.
“The following day on Saturday before opening, management was unable to gain access using all secure keys and removing the locking mechanism before alerting the police. We are aware of public posts that are full of information that is not correct, and we believe the speculations have not contributed positively to anyone affected, including the grieving family, the dedicated Gurkha staff and the community of Blackpool. We are aware of an ongoing inquest and will not be making any further public comments.”
An inquest into Sabrina’s death is scheduled at Blackpool Town Hall for around 10am on April 3. Sabrina’s mother Christine, aged 68, stated earlier that patrons had reported not being able to enter one of the cubicles in the days preceding her discovery.
A representative for Lancashire Constabulary previously commented: “We were called at shortly after 1pm on Saturday, November 30 to a report of a sudden death at an address on Waterloo Road in Blackpool. Officers attended and sadly the body of a woman in her 40s was found dead inside the address. Our thoughts are with her loved ones at this time. The death is not being treated as suspicious and a file will be prepared for the coroner.”
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