A 78-year-old man who was arrested after a suspected burglar was stabbed to death in his home will face no further action, police have said.

Scotland Yard said it made the decision on Friday after consulting the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS). Henry Vincent, 37, died after the incident at the home of Richard Osborn-Brooks late on Tuesday night.

Osborn-Brooks was arrested on suspicion of murder the following day and released on bail. A second intruder was thought to have escaped the scene and was still at large.

On Friday, the Metropolitan police defended their decision to interview Osborn-Brooks under caution. DCI Simon Harding said: “This is a tragic case for all of those involved. As expected with any incident where someone has lost their life, my officers carried out a thorough investigation into the circumstances of the death.

“Whilst there might be various forms of debate about which processes should be used in cases such as this, it was important that the resident was interviewed by officers under the appropriate legislation of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act – not only for the integrity of our investigation but also so that his personal and legal rights were protected.”

Officers said they had approached the CPS for advice and, based on the evidence available, had decided not to seek a charging decision. They said an inquest would be held in due course.

Osborn-Brooks called police out to his home in the Lewisham area of south-east London in the early hours of Wednesday. He said he was at home with his wife and had found two men inside the house.

He said one of the men threatened him with a screwdriver and a struggle broke out. It is thought Vincent, who was found collapsed nearby with a stab wound to the upper body, was dragged away from the house by his accomplice, who then fled. Vincent was taken to hospital but died on Wednesday morning.

Police said they had spoken to Vincent’s family and explained their decision, though officers did not release the exact details of it.

It later emerged Vincent had been wanted in connection with a separate burglary involving an elderly victim.

In January, he was named by Kent police as they investigated a so-called distraction burglary in which valuables were stolen from a man in his 70s. In that incident, a woman knocked on the door of the pensioner’s house claiming to have been assaulted. She left when a white van pulled up and sounded its horn; the homeowner later discovered that valuables were missing.

Kent police had said they were keen to speak to Vincent and another man identified as Billy Jeeves. The Met has not identified the man they suspect of being Vincent’s accomplice during Tuesday night’s incident.