Police in Kurayoshi, Tottori Prefecture, said Thursday they have arrested a 21-year-old man on suspicion of fatally abusing his 4-month-old daughter.
According to police, the suspect, identified as Shinya Yamagata, called 119 at around 1 p.m. on Wednesday and said his daughter Mugi had choked while drinking milk and was not breathing, Fuji TV reported.
When firefighters arrived at the apartment, Mugi was in a state of cardio-respiratory arrest. She was taken to hospital where she was pronounced dead.
However, police said that doctors noticed bruises on Mugi's back and stomach. A further examination revealed she also had a fractured skull.
On Thursday, police arrested Yamagata who was quoted as saying he beat Mugi between 7:30 a.m. and 1 p.m. because she wouldn't stop crying, but that he didn't mean to kill her.
Yamagata lived with his wife and his wife's older sister. His wife was working at a supermarket, while her sister was also out for the morning.
© Japan Today
26 Comments
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Disillusioned
What is it with these idiots! The baby is crying so they beat it thinking it will stop crying? I think this goon has a few screws loose and needs to be receiving therapy while he's locked in a 6x8 cell.
SauloJpn
Pls lock away this monster for a long time. He doesn't even grasp the enormity of his crime! Imagine all the nights locked away in dead silence, when he could only wish for is the sound of his angel cry. The sorrow one could not wish upon his worst enemy. RIP little angel.
harvey pekar
Don't lock him away, give him the death penalty. He destroyed this little girl before she even had a chance. This man is an adult, we know what he is and what he's capable of, a sick animal who somewhere in his sick thinking felt it's okay to fatally beat a baby, a baby! Humanity doesn't need this man and I fear for his wife.
sensei258
Headline should read 21 year old loser. Somebody who does that shouldn't be called a man. Judges, do your duty.
bjohnson23
baby crying, beat the crap out of it, I don't think it says that in any child rearing book
sensei258
What a frikken moron! A tiny baby cries from hunger, wanting to be held, or needing a diaper change. It's not rocket science. I suspect the crying disturbed his videos gaming. I'd be willing to bet he's unemployed too.
Knox Harrington
Goodness!
There seem to be an abundance of these sociopaths around here. Only a mentally ill person would even THINK it would be a good idea to hit a baby. This screams educational failure to me, boyh from parents and teachers. Unfortunately, I believe there are a lot of these people in Japan - people who don't really have a grasp of what's right or wrong. I also bet the writing was on the wall in this case, but, considering there are no social services whatsoever operating in Japan, no one gave a hoot. Now they do.
I feel sick.
gogogo
Beating a 4 month? this guy needs to be beaten
Yubaru
And sadly it's a world-wide problem, immature people should not be breeding.
DaDude
Here we go again, formulating an opinion about the entire country from reading a few articles on this website. Please tell us about the perfect parenting in your country and how nothing ever happens.
Yubaru
Let me guess, you either live outside of Japan, or live in Japan and speak no Japanese, or perhaps live with your head in a box? Which is it?
This country is floating in an ocean of red ink BECAUSE of the social welfare system. Help is out there if one seeks it, and seeing as how this is NOT a communist society folks dont go knocking down doors to ensure that everyone, baby to grandma grandpa is living right.
People are not perfect here, as much as you might want to fantasize that they are, but making blanket ignorance based statements about the state of the entire country is no better that a Japanese person complaining about "gaikokuland".
Christopher Glen
What a disturbed individual. They should beat him instead
GW
Like I have been saying & getting negged, Japan has far too many people having kids who have neither the financial means or level of maturity to raise kids.
The articles we read are a tip of the ice burg of nastiness that is becoming more & more common in Japan & sadly a country that need skids will likely see more younger "parents" having kids when shouldn't & the kids will suffer, sadly to many wont make it out alive!
And I am not blaming an entire country but CLEARLY there are far to many unfit parents on these isles! And we will continue to read about these tragedies.
Yubaru
Sure sounds like it when you write stuff like this.....
What makes you think that Japan is so "special"?
This is just as bad as Japanese making blanket stereotypical/over generalized statements about how folks in "other" countries act!
These are for the most part isolated cases in a country of over 120 MILLION people! You have a better chance of making it past childhood here than let's say (fill in the blank of with the name of any 3rd world country).
Crap happens, people aren't ready to be parents, but at least they don't rent their kids out as hookers, or drug-dealers, or IED's YES this guy deserves serious punishment but quit making it sound like the ENTIRE country is to blame for a few cases, and overall sadly even one is too many, but FEW cases like this.
Want to talk abuse...let's make the comparison to let's say ...the USA...no comparison.
Wc626
Wow, that's so wrong. Driven to tears.
Ali Khan
she was crying on her fate for being your daughter, the mother will remain in pain for ever. little angel rest in peace we feel sad for you
Kabukilover
This is another heartbreaking story. The poor little girl never had a chance at life. Of course the moron in question did not mean to kill the child, but fact is that he did. He'll have to live with it for the rest of his rotten life.
The disquieting thing is that beating children is socially acceptable in Japan. Teachers get away with taibatsu even though it is illegal. There are parents who want teachers to beat their kids so they will study harder.
Beating children is as much mainstream here as it was in Victorian England and is in redneck America.
Yes, he didn't mean to kill the child. He was just doing what he learned was socially acceptable behavior.
Aaron Lloyd Brummett
Its like a bad horror movie... except that its real. RIP< little Angel!
Nobusaki
Another tragic death of a defenseless child.
Rest in Peace little one, I will be praying for you tonight.
Fadamor
4 month old child crying (for whatever reason)... Solution? Beat the child while speaking (more probably, "yelling") in a language the child has not yet learned. That's SURE to get them to stop crying. (can't roll my eyes far enough for this kind of flawed thinking).
ThePBot
China and Korea has worse child abuse cases than Japan.
A world survey poll which shows countries seen favorably by others in a positive way:
Japan-100% Korea-0% China-0%
Most popular and best tasting cuisine: Japan-100% Korea-Dogs China-Melamine
source: Sankei Shimbun
khulifi
Why they arrested him , in Japan 21 years old is almost minor .., what they will do for him ... I guess maximum few weeks
Christopher Glen
I predict 10 years max........unfortunately
kokoro7
I implore the judicial system, or what passes for such in Japan, to let me spend some time with this subhuman and, uh..., reeducate it.