Police in Higashimurayama, Tokyo, on Monday arrested a 19-year-old unemployed woman on suspicion of abandoning the corpse of her newborn son after giving birth at her home.
According to police, the suspect, who cannot be named because she is a minor, gave birth to her son at her home in late September and then placed the infant’s body, with his umbilical cord still attached, inside a plastic bag and put it in a cardboard box, Sankei Shimbun reported.
Her mother discovered the box on Monday after noticing a foul odor coming from her daughter’s room. She then took her daughter to the police station.
Police said the suspect told them there was no crying or movement from the baby when he was born and she thought he was dead.
The suspect lives with her older sister and mother.
© Japan Today
16 Comments
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Illogical
Sad in all senses and not much more can be said.
sensei258
So she had a baby in her room and she didn't think to tell her mother? Maybe she didn't want her family to think she was promiscuous, but having a babies decomposing corpse in her closet, that was okay.
sensei258
She killed her baby, but we wouldn't want to embarrass her by releasing her name.
Disillusioned
You know, I was shocked by the frequency of these kinds of deaths when I first came to Japan. Babies being put in the trash, boxes, wardrobes and train lockers or just cast onto a riverbank. However, after nearly two decades living in Japan it no longer shocks me. Of course it disgusts me, but my only comment is, "Another one?" These women have many options, but the stresses of the society will not allow them to break the 'wa' and take the appropriate action. Disgusting!
FAISAL NADEEM
i think, police must postmortem the body, and after the result they make decision of girl.
Aly Rustom
I agree.
doel jusino
This is SO senseless .... Wasn't their a case last week when a 19 year old gave birth at home and threw the baby out the window and her brother found the body ???? Japanese parents need to talk with their children about the Birds & the Bee's and hopefully less cases like this happen.... So the 19 year old told the police there was no crying or movement from the baby when he was born and she thought he was dead. So why not call the police or ambulance instead of putting the baby in a box ???? I bet the family didn't know she was pregnant.
Vince Black
She needs to be named and publicly shamed in front of news cameras. People like this shouldn't be allowed the luxury of obscurity. Put her face all over the news, she's a murderer
commanteer
Yes, let's be like Medieval Europe.
GrungeHamster
Man I am getting the weirdest deja vu. Oh because there is literally a story just like this in the same page.
What is so difficult about either:
A. Wearing protection.
B. Taking responsibility for your actions.
Jonathan Prin
C. Dispose as you wish what is yours (Japanese view, not mine).
No national association is ever claiming vividly that some actions need to be taken.
This girl was following a pattern.
What is shocking me is that the mother screwed her daughter bringing her to the police instead of hospital !
kurisupisu
As long as Japanese society stigmatises births out of wedlock then we can expect to see repeats of these types of incidents.....
RareReason
Indeed. Because the hospital wouldn't ask any questions if you bring them a dead baby in a bag that's been decomposing for 3 weeks.
Gaijinjland
Sad. My wife and I have been trying to adopt for the past two years. Still on the waiting list. Apparently a fully “Japanese” family is “better” for a “Japanese” child’s development.