Gardener arrested for strangling housewife in Ibaraki

angry at work? needed money to pay off debts? angry at family? angry because woman rejected him?

I think you can stop at "angry".

Agatha Christie might have used a butler, but an itinerant gardner is a new twist. Of course, no respectable woman would hire a man who lives in his car, so her omission can be forgiven. Was it lust,passion, rage at an insult, an attempt to improve his life or voices in his head. I'll GUESS that he was tired of his life and decided that prison would be better. He chose this woman because she annoyed him or he had a sudden inspiration at that time.

Most likely the woman condescended to him, thus magnifying his feeling of "inferiority".

I would have to go with "sexual rage" on this one.

Hell hath no fury like a gardener scorned. Especially a homeless one.

S

a case of desperate housewife having an affair with a milk-man..or in this case a gardener....hmmm..that could be possible?...:) I'm not Japanese ..so don't know if my guess would be true..any Japanese readers willing to voice out some opinions?....thanks!

Moderator: Readers, please do not make these sort of lurid speculations.

Or it could be a set-up by the husband.

The motive could have been so many things, even just a fit of murderous insanity. There is not anything here to even begin to field a guess except money being as he was homeless and did work for the woman. But those could not be any slimmer.

Of course, no respectable woman would hire a man who lives in his car

Say what? Where the heck did that come from? Putting the homeless to work is a noble deed. Risky while the hubby is away, but that does not make it unworthy of a respectable woman. I can't even call your contention old fashioned. So what the heck is it then? --Cirroc

I was told not to make 'Lurid Speculations...wot?...aren't we all supposed to be here to discuss and make suggestions....?.

Moderator: There is a difference between discussion and making inappropriate remarks. This is a tragic story. A woman was strangled. Readers should bear that in mind.

CORRECTION-allegedly strangled!!

Basically, I side with seesaw. But also, I warn seesaw that jumping for the sexual motive with no proof at all exposes something about seesaw. So at least keep it civil if you have not been all along.

Yes, a woman is dead. But when the motive is revealed, the woman's appearance of innocence might be swept away. She might have really done something really nasty to the gardener. Then again, she may be the poor innocent woman we all want to believe she was, and the gardener the foul villian. But in any case, killing never warranted.

CORRECTION-allegedly strangled!!

If you wish, but he has admitted to the charge. Who are we to doubt his word? :)--Cirroc

He may have been forced into confessing. You'll notice he has given no motive. He might not have had the energy to give one. Those interrogations are very harsh. What kind of lawyer would believe anything from police!! Granted he has confessed, but this IS Japan and it should be taken into consideration.

Well, she hired him and he fired her. She gave him the job, to look after her flowers. Was he paid to do his job or is there something else behind the scene. Time will tell.

Thank you CavemanLawyer! No one here has proofs of what to say. We are all guessing.

Actually, I believe that we could have stopped at the fact that he was arrested. Anything after that is pure speculation, including his confession. His so-called confession will only make sense if we next hear of the motive, his reenactment purp-walk, and forensics. And where is that video tape of his interrogation? Oh, I forgot – it is only for confessions, and then only if the police choose to do so.

For all we know the police simply arrested the first recalled “other” in the neighborhood. It could have just as easily been the delivery service man, the paper delivery person, a roaming proselytizer, or a person lost for the moment and seeking directions.

Yes..BBLeo..time will tell.....

Bizarre case.

糸口が見つかったのは２５日。パトロール中の警察官が、昨年６月に茨城町のガソリンスタンドで発生した給油詐欺事件の容疑者として、水戸市内のパチンコ店の駐車場にいた男を逮捕。この男、大平容疑者の名前が、佐藤さん宅への出入り業者として捜査対象者のリストにあったことから、指紋を採取、殺害現場に残されていた指紋と一致した。

Donuts on patrol arrested a man on Saturday for a non-payment of gasoline and drive-off which happened in June last year. This man was Ohira, who was on the cop's list of people known to have entered Noriko's premises. So they took his prints, and they matched those found at the crime scene. Fragments of his clothes were also found (sic).

Ohira did work for Noriko last year, and is reported to have known that she lived by herself during the week.

Apparently he had only several thousand yen on his person at the time of his arrest. Maybe he did it to get shelter and a bed.

Nessie, great skeptics think alike.

Sorry, but I agree totally with the moderator. I think it is highly disrespectful to make lurid speculations. He (the garderner) living in car? He is a J-looser and he just did not have the guts to commit suicide so he is taking the easy way out by killing this innocent house wife. Hatoyama san please, please hurry and put this idiot gardner out of his misery!

Kjun, yeah. It'll be interesting to see how this turns out.