A 62-year-old man who had been buried alive for four days was rescued after police heard his muffled cries for help coming from underground.

Officers in Moldova found the man as they were investigating after a 74-year-old woman was found dead by in her own home by a relative on Monday.

Police arrested a suspect in her death and, as they searched his home in the same village, heard cries for help from nearby.

They started digging and found the entrance to a makeshift grave where an 18-year-old man had locked up the elderly man.

Police footage released on Wednesday shows the man being pulled out. He was conscious and had a neck wound. 

Forensic specialists were called to a residence in Ustia, northwest Moldova on Monday after an elderly woman was found dead in her home.

They went towards the noise, began to dig and discovered a man in his sixties who had been buried in a makeshift grave covered with soil.

He had suffered a neck wound, but was alive and conscious. 

The man told police he and the teenager had been drinking alcohol together on Saturday when they started to argue.

The suspect then allegedly attacked him with a knife before locking him in the makeshift basement, burying him alive and covering the entrance with soil.

Officers believe the teenager murdered the elderly woman the following day, either on Sunday night or in the early hours of Monday.

He has been remanded into custody as police and prosecutors continue to investigate him for murder and attempted murder. He faces up to life in prison if found guilty.

The rescued man is receiving treatment in hospital.

One local said about the deceased victim: ‘She was a very decent woman, no one ever had any problems with her.’