Thirty-year-old corpse discovered in cellar of €35m Paris mansion

Gruesome find halts work on restoring newly purchased complex in prestigious area

Work on restoring an abandoned 35m (27m) mansion in one of the most prestigious areas of Paris has been suspended after the discovery of a corpse that had been decomposing in the basement for 30 years, local media have reported.

Minutes from Les Invalides and the French prime minister's official residence, and backing onto the former home of Yves Saint Laurent, the vast but crumbling complex at 12 rue Oudinot in the heart of Paris had been empty for more than 30 years.