Police on Thursday further increased the number of officers searching for the remaining body parts of University of Shimane student Miyako Hiraoka, 19, and have begun checking video stores in the area for certain DVD rental patterns in the belief that horror movies may have had a part to play in the disturbing crime.
A mushroom collector last Friday discovered the severed head of the girl, who went missing last month after leaving work at an ice cream parlor in Hamada, Shimane Prefecture. Police, deploying about 200 officers a day so far, have since found her torso, left ankle and a thigh bone, all in separate locations and possibly hurled into the undergrowth from a vehicle.
Meanwhile, grisly details about the condition of Hiraoka's body emerged. Police revealed to the media that there were signs Hiraoka had been burnt in places. Media have reported that the head showed signs of assault before her death, that both breasts had been cut off the torso, and that the flesh seemed to have been scraped off the thigh bone.
Police said that they were analyzing highway cameras on nearby Route 186, which connects Hiroshima and Hamada, looking for one car in particular that a nearby resident said had repeatedly sped down the windy road that Hiraoka used to walk home, at around the same time of night.
The male resident told police that he saw a car speed down the narrow road once or twice a week for the past couple of months at around 9.30 p.m., the same time that Hiraoka used to walk home after her part-time job finished. The man added that he hadn’t seen the car since Hiraoka went missing on Oct 26.
Police also said that Hiraoka had told her parents several days before she went missing that she would be changing her part-time job as the walk home was scary for her. Her new workplace was located near JR Hamada station, in the direction which several people claimed to have seen a woman with a black-and-white top similar to the one Hiraoka was wearing.
© Wire reports
53 Comments
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Proffesor
Sick!
BurakuminDes
Let's all hope they catch this maniac and summarily execute him - there is no doubt in my mind if he isn't caught soon, he will torture and kill more women. RIP to Miyako.
combinibento
Sounds like we may have a cannibal on our hands...
my2sense
Man... call the profilers at the BAU, FBI. This is hardcore sick and I have seen some horror cases in the US. Bundy, Dahlmer, Ed Gein... this is at that level and they MUST catch this sexual sadist. Poor girl was just another student trying to get by... My guess is it was a sicko who stalked her and saw her walking after work many times. Screw the culture rules... start knocking on doors and ringing door bells.
inakaRob
Thats serious. That's no murder gone wrong, or hey lets get rid of the body. this is a 100% true psychopath we have here. gruesome stuff! You scientists think there are something like several hundred serial killers that we have no idea they even exist (we think they exist, but the pattern, or bodies have yet to be discovered) . just look at the guy they caught in America, BY ACCIDENT!!!
my2sense
Japanese, male, late 20s to mid 30s or even 40s, unattractive, single, drop out, limited family, hentai lover, porn lover, horror flicks, a possible rap sheet, no job or a temp worker, sociopath, virgin or pays for it, uses Internet on phone or home and to access sites that relate to this, has tried to speak to her.... there is a head start profile NPA.. GO!
Altria
I'm generally unfazed by the daily reports of murder in the news, but this one has really got to me. How much pain and fear Miyako must have felt during the final minutes of her life...and someone was standing over her laughing and getting kicks out of the whole thing.
kokorocloud
Every story I read about this poor woman makes me ill. I hope they find the bastards who did this. I really do. Some people are so sick.
Police also said that Hiraoka had told her parents several days before she went missing that she would be changing her part-time job as the walk home was scary for her.
This disturbs me most of all.
flatearther
Another day, another predator who preys upon women he can dominate. Anyone have any solutions? Mandatory pepper spray for all women in Japan, maybe?
WilliB
I see the JT armchair profilers are busy again.
That know zip, zilch nada this far does not matter...
flatearther
I wonder why no one thought to walk her home after she mentioned it was "scary"? That would have set off alarm bells for me, and if it were my father he would have hit the roof and started walking me home from work. ESPECIALLY if I were this girl's age.
pawatan
Poor girl, what else can be said...
dr_jones
It always amazes me how quick the mob jumps to conclusions!
How about this profile: Male, middle 50s, attractive, married, golf player, intellectual, book lover, company boss or other high position, two children ... would just as well fit the bill!
cactusJack
A regular Hannibal Lecter-san. Grody to the max.
smartacus
dr jones
Actually, your profile wouldn't be consistent with the sort of person that commits these sorts of crimes. The original profile, which you are disputing, is probably closer to the mark.
Junnama
Oh, just vile...
butterfly1
RIP Miyako. This crime is so awful. I hope that the police find him before he commits any more horrific crimes.
dolphingirl
Sounds like an episode from Criminal Minds. I hope they find this psycho killer and fast. But please spare us the grisly details!
terebiko
flatearther, her parents didn't live in the same prefecture as her. She was staying in the university dormitory. I'm sure if she would have asked someone there to walk her home, they would have. Then again, it could have been someone from the dormitory, or someone she knew that did this. Whatever the case may be, hope they catch the person or persons responsible.
my2sense
cheers brainiac.
flatearther
Thanks for the information, the article didn't mention she was living in the dorms. As far as someone walking her home, do you really think someone would have? It's a possibility,sure,but do you really think it's likely? I've seen Japanese people leave their friends in the street here when they drink too much, so I have my doubts. I guess my main point is that perhaps we should all start doing things to prevent crimes like this, ranging from walking a coworker/friend home from work to asking a high school kid in an elevator if some guy is making her uncomfortable. Simple, easy and it may prevent a violent crime.
smithinjapan
"and have begun checking video stores in the area for certain DVD rental patterns in the belief that horror movies may have had a part to play in the disturbing crime..."
What??? This is one sick crime, to be sure, but it doesn't mean the people rented/watched horror flicks. It could be ANYTHING, from regular samurai TV shows to the disgustingly cruel video games people play.
nath
wow...what a sicko
imomofo
I hope somebody catches this guy before the cops do and give him a taste of his own medicine.
pointofview
Sick. People have to be careful and always keep an eye on their surroundings. Disturbing and very sad.
Tommygun
This is sounding a lot like the American TV show "Dexter". In the first season a killer cuts up body parts of people and leaves them scattered, usually the head is not with the other body parts. What's worse is that in this series the killer cuts the flesh off the thigh bone. The killer is experimenting.
It's absolutly sick but this seems to bear more than a passing resmeblance.
tigerguy
This is scary, we have a sicko animal living and hiding amongst us. He's definitely not the only one.
dammit
This story really does get worse with each new report.
Leave Ichihashi to starve himself to death, this is more important than giving him a trial. Someone is out there who likes to do this sort of thing. Will they at some point decide they want to do it again? Probably, but the fact that once might keep them high for a few years is too remote to gamble on.
Anyway, who says such psychos have to be single? The Yorkshire Ripper was married, and his wife didn't have clue about his blood-fests. Not in the same league as this sicko of course, but anyone can hide things from the unsuspecting. And who says it's a man? Or that it's one person? I could be any number of people, of any gender. Look at the woman opposite you on the train. How can you be sure she's not capable of doing this? Alone or with one or more assistants?
Tommygun
To cut up a body and play around with it you need time and a place of privacy to do it. So I think they are a single person. They'll probably do it again. I think it's less likely that there's two sickos working together. I think it's a man as they'd had to be physically strong, they killed by blows to the head I believe, also they had to throw body parts possibly from a car or van meaning they had some physical strength beyond that of a Japanese woman and if it's a stalker I find it less likely that a woman would stalk another woman. They clearly enjoy what they did, they dumped the body where it could be found, no panic to hide or cover it up, they'll try it again.
boboh
Tommygun
Gee, thanks for the dry, insightful, unsolicited analysis, Sherlock. All i could think was "Sick, sick, sick".
nemoflow
Jesus, this is getting bad. Proper dark killing.
...and he is still out there...
Jkanda
Brainiac, the profiles described by dr_jones are also possible here sadly. This psychosocial issue is not being addressed in this nation.According to some cases reported young women, both Japanese and non-japanese are warned against men of age 40s to 50s, single after divorce, and with children. One other clue is people who claim to be free-lancers or photographers.
timorborder
And just when you think you have heard and seen everything, some monster comes out of the woodwork and does something like this. Unbelievably heinous and totally unfathomable. Moreover, you can bet your bottom dollar that the clown that committed this act is getting his/her jollies every morning reliving the event by reading and hearing about it in the local media.
I also believe that if this person is not caught quickly, there will be a further escalation in their crimes (it is pretty hard to imagine how they could do any worse). Furthermore, I am all in favor of the authorities slotting whoever is responsible for these acts out of hand. Why? Because you just know that such a nutjob would love the attention associated with any trial.
Anyway, RIP the victim. And to the perpetrator the following - Your time will come buddy!!!!
dasyhard
The J-cops should never stop trying to catch the culprit/s and they probably know it. I hope they have some kind of plan such as traps to entice a kidnap again. And if it does happen, the cops can then investigate the culprit's living quarters to gather evidence. If the body parts were easily found, this sicko is probably challenging the law enforcement/society to "come and get me if you can find me". If this person/s are never caught, GOD will ensure justice is done.
temporaryVisa
How about starting by banning those disgusting torture exploitation movies that let disturbed people build up sick fantasy worlds.
Tahoochi
I hate to sound naive, but when I hear about crap like this, it's hard to believe that we humans are all born pretty much the same helpless, pure and innocent creatures. This bastard needs to be caught and sent back to hell.
Disillusioned
OK, I'm officially grossed out. There are some sick bastards in this world. So, they have 200 cops looking for body parts. How many do they have looking for the sicko that did it?
kinniku
I know the police will continue to do their best to find the horrible excuse for a human being that killed this poor innocent young woman. I pray for her, her family and friends.
sicklittlemonkey
There's an interesting short talk on TED by Jim Fallon about the genetic and environmental factors common to many killers. I hope the police catch this terrible new example.
Badge213
Jesus , this is one reason why I support the death penalty for murders.
Makun
I feel so much sadness for this girl...She worked at an ice cream parlor for Christ's sake. She had her hole life ahead of her. Humanity at its finest. All I can do is try my best to protect the ones I care about.
Molenir
Indeed. And why, even in a civilized society, there must be a death penalty, for those who are completely uncivilized.
souryeki
Reminds me Birdman of Mo Hayder, as sick as that.
DXXJP
To me the ground off flesh would suggest she might have been hit by the car. As far as the rest well maybe in a panic the suspect thought it would be harder to find or assemble a suspect with the body scattered.
Remember though not to long ago the cops thought that the person who cut the boys head off was an older deviant, just to find out the killer was but a boy.
Sarge
"...and he is still out there..."
"He" is probably a he, but just might be a she. We just don't know.
Whoever did this needs to be apprehended, put on trial, and executed ASAP.
southsakai
This bastard is beyond sick, total psycho. I wish we had the gas chamber for nut jobs like these. Better yet, ship them off to some Islamic sharia country for justice and punishment. I just can't imagine how her parents will cope with this.
Sarge
Whoever did this makes Ichihashi look like a saint.
ptolemy
For the love of Zeus!!! MRT in Miyazaki just ran all these details which means TBS has as well. I wonder how her family can possibly cope knowing all this. Sometimes it is best if the media zips it, especially in these details.
I would probably die knowing this kind of brutality was done to my wife or daughter. It seems after Nori-P, the Japanese media have lost what little ethics it had left.
PepinGalarga
yeah, they should not be releasing any of these details since they only hinder confirmation of any confession beat, er. talked out of any suspect. Also, the family deserves to be treated with dignity.
WilliB
ptolemy:
They had some?
stormcrow
poor, poor girl
poor, poor family
what kind of a sick animal would do something like this?
mnemosyne23
I hope they find the sick freak who did this, try him, convict him, and then hand him over to the general public for a good ol' fashioned lynching. I'm assuming it's a male who did this, but if it's a female I want the same thing. No mercy, no leniency, and absolutely no chance of breathing fresh air again.
Agreed. Hit by a car, or possibly dragged by an animal. I'm not a forensic specialist and I certainly don't know the total state of the remains that have been found -- despite the media's attempts to tell us all the grisly details -- but I have to believe that at least SOME of the horrors inflicted on this poor girl were done post-mortem during disposal of the body. Which is not to say I give this disgusting creep any kind of leniency; he's a butcher and a devil. Hmm, you know, instead of a public lynching, how about they go REALLY old school on this guy and draw and quarter him? There'd be some sweet justice in tearing him (or her) limb from limb, don't you think?