Man kept mother’s body at home after her death last June

There are two ways to look at this. Either he is a cunning criminal who wanted to steal his mother's pension. Or, the financial situation for many elderly leaves them no option than to break the law to survive due to the pittance pension they receive after paying large premiums into the pension scheme/scam for 30+ years..

Before we get the usual, "How is this abandonment of a corpse?" question, let's head it off. Abandoning a corpse is the improper disposal of a corpse.

Wow! That was amazing how I did that.

A 78 years old scammer!?

I was expecting an unemployed man in his forties/fifties.

Come on Grandpa!

The latest version of a story that you become desensitized to after a while.

he told police he had continued to collect his mother’s pension

When I read the headline, I thought he just liked him mom

According to police, Katsuyoshi Nabata, who lived alone with his mother said that his mother died last June, Sankei Shimbun reported. Her decayed body was found by Nabata's 47-year-old son on Saturday night when he came to visit his father and grandmother for the Golden Week holidays. He found his grandmother's corpse on the bed in her first-floor bedroom, and notified police.

47 year old son, nearly a year after the fact, comes home and finds Grandma's corpse! Guess the grandson didn't talk too much with grandma, and at 47 years old, odds are he has kids too, so great-grandma wasnt in the picture either.

Not a lot of family communication here!

Does continuing to claim her pension actually involve doing anything? Or is it simply that the money continued to be automatically paid into her account?

his mother said that his mother died last June, Sankei Shimbun reported. Her decayed body was found by Nabata's 47-year-old son on Saturday night when he came to visit his father and grandmother for the Golden Week holidays.

I think the bigger issue is that since last year the son had not seen his dad.  I am going to go on a limb and say he probably didn't call much either since if he would have called he could have said "how's grandma" and let me say hello.  If dad would have given some other answer I would think that at some point he would at least made a trip up to pay a visit.

Yet the image we like to be presented about Japan at times is that is has a strong family ethic, and blood lines matter hence the relatively few adoptions in this country.  But the real picture it seems is that's just a farce, and blood lines really don't matter.

Yet the image we like to be presented about Japan at times is that is has a strong family ethic, and blood lines matter hence the relatively few adoptions in this country. But the real picture it seems is that's just a farce, and blood lines really don't matter.

This is not a logical inference.

Usually these stories contain 3 elements. Family member, abandment of a corpse...and unemployed.

On the other hand maybe he really needed the money so he wouldn't go hungry or homeless. 

well he really needs to get a job, plenty of them around. collecting and spending a deads relatives pension is theft plain and simple, not to mention the morality issue.

I just don't understand how the smell doesn't overpower the house and those locally. Even if it is a relatively secluded property it must have been terrible.

Before we get the usual, "How is this abandonment of a corpse?" question, let's head it off. Abandoning a corpse is the improper disposal of a corpse.

But he didn't dispose of it at all.

Before we get the usual, "How is this abandonment of a corpse?" question, let's head it off. Abandoning a corpse is the improper disposal of a corpse.

But he didn't dispose of it at all.

Yup. That's what makes it improper.

Not a lot of family communication here!

To be fair, I rarely speak directly with my grandparents as well. Usually sometimes parents will say 'they are fine' , grandkids, I know many folks who don't often communicate with grandparents, and I know many who do, to each his own, be it isn't something that is abnormal in the world.

Well maybe he kept her body so he could continue to collect her pension, That's wrong she should have been put to rest shortly after passing. On the other hand maybe he really needed the money so he wouldn't go hungry or homeless. RIP Mama San.

The latest version of a story that you become desensitized to after a while.

Exactly. This would be a pretty big story where I'm from. In Japan, no one even raises an eyelid.