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A man in his 40s is suspected of killing a 21-year-old university student in her apartment and then killing himself by setting fire to his own apartment one floor below in Daito, Osaka Prefecture, on Wednesday.
Police identified the body of the murdered woman as Momona Yoshioka, Fuji TV reported. She was a fourth-year private university student and lived alone in her apartment.
At around 6:50 a.m. on Wednesday, another tenant in the building called 110 to report hearing a woman screaming. Yoshioka was found collapsed and bleeding inside her apartment. Police said she had several wounds inflicted on her head and was lying face down beside her bed. The bedroom was covered in blood, and a blood-stained crowbar was on the floor. Yoshioka was taken to hospital where she was declared dead.
Police also detected the smell of oil coming from the apartment directly below her where they discovered a fire had destroyed much of the apartment. The man who lived there was taken to hospital where he was pronounced dead.
Police suspect the man murdered killed Yoshioka and then returned to his apartment which he torched.
An emergency ladder was found connecting the balconies of the suspect’s second-floor apartment and Yoshioka’s on the third floor.
© Japan Today
11 Comments
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Zaphod
Gruesome. Like a scene out of a bad horror movie.
tamanegi
This happened ten minutes walk from where I live. Unbelievable. Typical nondescript street and suburb.
RIP Momona
Kyakusenbi_Arimasu
Was on the news before. They blue sheeted the view.
Jim
Even the third floor isn’t safe anymore...
kaimycahl
The article states that the Police also detected the smell of oil coming from the apartment directly below her where they discovered a fire had destroyed much of the apartment. The man who lived there was taken to hospital where he was pronounced dead. Wouldn't one think the police was called to the scene after hearing a women scream, and once arriving smelled fire as it gives off a distinct odor instead of going to the apartment and hearing a women scream and detected the smell of oil coming from the apartment directly below. Its seems the order of discovery is out of place!
trinklets2
No floor is safe esp if the next door apt is empty or the upper floor is. A really nice country but it has its creepy side.
Sven Asai
What are you talking about? Every floor is absolutely safe if equipped appropriately and any potential intruder or known attacker can be distanced even up to three kilometers. You don’t believe it? Place this thing at your window or entrance and you can dictate of whom or what your whole environment consists of and also can surely sleep relaxed and dream like a baby. lol
(Dubbed the "Super aEgis II" and touted by its maker, South Korean defense firm, DoDaam Systems, as a "Total Security Solution," this automated turret is capable of locking onto and firing upon a human target at a distance of 3 kilometers (1.8 miles). The SEII uses a 35x CCD color camera capable of operating in low light and adverse weather conditions as well as a dual field of view FLIR camera that can pick out a man-sized target 2.2km away in complete darkness and a laser range finder. The entire platform sits atop a gyroscopic stabilizer to ensure accurate shots in high winds and after recoils.)
William Bjornson
That's just Humanity in general. The same people live in ALL 'countries', but Japan seems to have fewer of them albeit, because there are fewer, they get more press. In America, MOST such stories like this get no press at all unless there is some other political reason for journalist's to pay attention or outlets to give space to. Sleep well, statistically you're as safe or safer as anywhere else in the World. One visits America for 'adventure'. One visits Japan for sanity, or at least, a reasonable substitute.
Toshihiro
This is just dark, a potential murder-suicide and arson. I know there isn't much evidence in the article, but I'm guessing that the two knew each other and fell out. Aren't there any built in water sprinkler in these apartments? RIP student.
This is why I make it a habit to lock my balcony door at all times.
Toshihiro
You got me there. I wonder what would be a good solution though. If this happened once, it could happen again. I could probably install store-bought alarms or just improvise an alarm and have a weapon and my phone at my bedside just in case.