Aichi prefectural police said Sunday that a suspect in the murder of a woman and her son in the town of Kanie last week remained in the house for more than 10 hours after the murders and that he left, apparently wearing a pair of sneakers belonging to one of the residents.
Police found the body of Masaki Yamada, 26, in a bedroom on Saturday, stabbed in the back and neck, after an officer visited the home around 12:30 p.m. following a call from a colleague concerned that Masaki had not turned up for work. When the officer arrived, he rang the doorbell and then saw Masaki's younger brother Isao, 25, trying to get out of a window. Isao, whose legs were bound and who had knife wounds to his neck, told the officer that the assailant was still inside.
Police said the officer peered through the partially open front door and saw a man dressed in black crouching inside. He ordered the man to come out, but upon receiving no response, he retreated to call for backup on his radio. By the time other officers arrived, the suspect had vanished. A pair of sneakers belonging to Isao were also gone. Police believe the suspect switched shoes and carried his away with him.
On the following day, police found the body of the men's mother, 57-year-old Kihoko Yamada, under a blanket in her closet.
Isao told police that he came home about 2 a.m. on Saturday and that as soon as he entered the house, he was attacked by a man, speaking Japanese in a strange accent. He said the man put a towel over his head. He told police he doesn't know what the man was doing in the house from 2 a.m. until the time the police officer arrived at 12:30.
Police said Sunday that three different weapons were used in the attacks. The mother died of head injuries caused by repeated blows with a blunt instrument, believed to be a wrench found near the bathroom sink on the first floor. Masaki was apparently killed by a cooking knife. A smaller knife found is believed to be the weapon used on Isao. The family cat was also killed. The two knives had been washed and were inside a plastic bag, police said.
Police have come under fire for allowing the suspect to escape. A police spokesman said Saturday that the officer on the scene who called for backup was only gone for about three minutes and that the suspect must have left through the back door during that time.
© News reports
34 Comments
Login to comment
smartacus
This crime reminds me of the killing of a family in Setagaya in 2000. In that case, the killer stayed in the house for a long time, eating ice cream.
This crime in Aichi gets more bizarre by the day. I wonder if the second son conspired with someone to kill his mom and brother, then gave himself light stab wounds to make it look like they had all been attacked. I can't imagine why the cat was killed, though.
some14some
Where is the suspect now?
nandakandamanda
Yup, my money is on the brother paying someone to do this for him, and then, as they were cleaning up the scene, they were startled by the arrival of the police. He told the mercenary to take his shoes, and then he himself then went through the pretense/pretence of escaping out of the window. Elementary my dear Watson... .
Disillusioned
Classic! Is suicide the only reason J-cops carry guns? In other countries cops always travel in pairs just for this reason. Japanese cops have got to get their act together and start acting like cops instead of just bicycle registration checkers.
jkoffman
"speaking Japanese in a strange accent" - oh wait, a gaijin did it?!? Sounds like Isao knows more then he's telling.
mindovermatter
Isn't that the truth... Obviously they are nothing like their fireman counter-parts in Japan, which are actually pretty damn good at what they do...
But these Jcops are totally worthless, why should they even carry guns...? When they have valid use, they never use them... Instead all you hear about is that some teenager took it away from them, or they lost it, or they're busy firing warning shots in some crowed part of tokyo...
Take their guns away... they have surely proven over and over again, that they don't know how to use them and they're about as responsible as an 8 year old with a new toy.
Every single time I see a Jcop he's either giving directions or hassling some old-lady or salary-man about their bicycle, Like they just stole that bike.... Unbelievable crap!
Moderator: Readers, please stay on topic. Focus your comments on this particular case, not Japanese police in general.
JohnBecker
Small distinction, but one worth making: keep in mind that the officer wasn't investigating a murder, he was going to a house to see why someone hadn't shown up for work.
I wonder why every police officer isn't carrying a radio on his person?
seesaw
Man with strange accent...certainly a gaijin. Acting alone? ...hmmm...could it be another revenge case? Masaki's boyfriend whom mother didn't approve?..he must have spent that 10 hrs enjoying his 'achievement'...what a saddist.
seesaw
i meant sadist.
bamboohat
I understand he was just checking a missing from work, but he sees a bleeding dude crawling out the window, and sees the bad guy inside, and it takes him THREE MINUTES to call for backup? Sounds like he was taking his time as he was expecting to wake up some drunk guy and was met with actual police style danger, and was concerned more for his safety than anything else.
Beelzebub
There seem to be some remarkable similarities between this crime and the murder of the Miyazaki family in Setagaya, Tokyo, in late December 2000.
flammenwerfer
come again? he let him get away? peering through doors and then "retreating'"?? why wasn't he carrying a radio on his person so that he could call for back up instantly and keep the perp in view? why didnt he kick open the door pull out his side arm and order the him to assume the position? Afterall he was told by the a resident of the house that he was an intruder; ergo, game on - do your job man! Police have to be prepared for the unexpected, a routine call can turn out to be a whole more. I am curous if this was a scared rookie cop or a greyhaired veteran too long in the tooth to be effective.
some14some
hard to know because tv channels are showing Manga image in blue dress.
MeanRingo
What would calling for backup have done? Let's say another 8 officers joined him. With nine cops on the scene the perp would still have gotten away. Come on people think Ishihashi. And apparently this guy wasn't even barefoot. Shoganai. Nothing could have avoided this outcome.
MeanRingo
Likeitis... on semantics I will agree. No two situations are alike. There will always be differences. The one thing you can count on is the ineptitude of the Japanese Police.
nokomarie
This story continues to be my favorite on so many levels. Apparently, J-police really do contain a crime scene from the front door inwards. Amazing.
thethudelh
Why didn't the cops pop a couple of caps in the dude's butt and be done with it.
likeitis
Unlikely, unless the perp disappeared before those nine cops arrived. 1) this was a house, not an apartment building. 2) this was an officer calling for backup after a crime had been known to have been committed, which makes a fat difference in alertness of police 3) Apparently police cannot even knock on the door without cause, but they had it this time.
This is not a difference of semantics.
likeitis
Almost exactly two years ago in Aichi, one cop was shot to death and another was wounded and left on the pavement for hours before being rescued. Cops are little leary of busting into houses now. Go figure.
franz75
"cops always travel in pairs" usually when that happens, one cop is parking the patrol car and the other one is shot.
Nosweat
I am a lazy poster and rarely read what others have said above me. Has anyone used the term, 'Keystone Cops'? If not, I just have.
LostinNagoya
3 minutes? I thought that Police manual would teach the officer that he had somehow to, at least, handcuff the criminal (not criminals, because he was informed so, thus the theory that there could me more people inside the house is ruined) AND THEN ask for help. He could even have tasered the guy. Now, my guess is that this officer will take the back door to leave his life - unfortunately.
fds
why did he have to retreat to call back up? the cop had a gun didn't he?
likeitis
fds: why did he have to retreat to call back up? the cop had a gun didn't he?
And maybe the perp did too. A gun does not stop bullets you know, it only spits them out. Running into a house where a killing nutcase is is really dangerous, even when you have a gun in your hand. Its also really irresponsible because if you fail and have not informed anyone, then that just gives the perp even more time to carry on and more opportunity to get away. Just because he got away this time does not mean that is the way it works EVERY time.
And the one guy who probably had any chance of surviving this madness once the police arrived was saved, just because a cop went to the house after a guy was reported to have not shown up for work. Anybody grateful about that?
But if the cop entered the house, walked into a booby trap, was killed by the perp and the perp went on to kill the younger brother too, you would be asking "Well why did that cop not call for backup and wait for them to arrive?"
Dennis Bauer
whatever another criminal on the lose, it will be solved when the criminal gives himself up. Or we will see a poster for the next 20 years.
kirakira25
Oh, well, in that case, completely understandable. I mean, if he had left the scene for, oh I don`t know, say 5 minutes? - that would have been irresponsible
yawmin
talk about keystone cops, im gonna go get back up, dont you go anywhere. . .
ca1ic0cat
I guess I would have thought that the cop would have had a radio on his person. I'm not saying he should have broken down the door gun in hand but he should not have had to leave the front door to call for backup.
This one sounds like enough of a nut job that I doubt he is going to give himself up. Start locking the doors.
likeitis
Okay. So you are suggesting he stand by the front door while calling for backup. Do you think there is any potential for being snuck up on by someone using the outside walls of the house for cover? Its really hard to see around a house you know, especially when you are right up against it. And your full attention better be on the door, because if the the perp spring out of it, you are not going to have much time to react. Plus, the perp is likely to going to hear everything you say, such as "I am all by myself here, standing by the front door." Meanwhile, the perp heads for a window in the back...
bushlover
An armed cop lets a dangerous criminal get away because he is afraid. Pathetic police force totally. Now we have to worry about some nut job running around because this pathetic excuse for a peace officer let him escape to the general population. And yes suspect that he let one family member stay alive and able to crawl out the window. Has insurance job written all over it but the guy will get sympathy and not suspicion. Especially with that nice touch of the 'strange accent' thing.
likeitis
It might be one of the reasons, yes. But its not the only one. Another one is that it was smart. Another action might have been brave, sure, but it would also have been stupid.
ritalynn
In the cop's defense, he did the right thing. he had no idea what the perp was carrying or if there was only one,(The guy said it was one but that doesn't mean there was one, he could have just seen and heard one.)Also why would there be more than one cop there? The report was that the older son never came in for work, there was no way in knowing what happen.
kittyo
Staying in the house for 10 hrs,killing the cat and changing into the victim's shoes sounds like this criminal is three cups of crazy...he shouldn't be hard to catch.
WilliB
This is a seriously weird story. I hope the J cops do their job and find out what exactly happened. Alas, they are not off to a good start.