Society

Man arrested for trying to kill acquaintance with mercury in tobacco

Jan 11 (Japan Today) - Police arrested a 36-year-old man Wednesday on suspicion of trying to kill an acquaintance with heat-not-burn tobacco laced with mercury.

Takashi Miyawaki of Otsu in Shiga Prefecture, western Japan, allegedly gave a pack of the spiked tobacco product to the 37-year-old male acquaintance on a street in the prefecture on June 3 last year, investigative sources said, adding there appears to have been a dispute over money between the two.

The man, who ended up using 14 of the 20 cartridges in the pack, was rushed to a hospital the following day after suffering from headaches, coughing and slurred speech. He reported to the police on June 5, telling investigators he developed the symptoms after consuming the tobacco he had been given.

Miyawaki has admitted to the charge of attempted murder, telling the police he added 0.3 to 0.5 gram of mercury to each of the 20 cartridges in the pack. Investigators detected mercury in the victim's urine and blood samples as well as the remaining cartridges, the police said.

They suspect Miyawaki used a device to inject mercury into each of the cartridges without opening the package.

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