Society

Hokkaido cops: Priest dismembered corpses found in residence

Aug 28 (tokyoreporter.com) - Upon surrendering at a police station in Sapporo over the weekend, priest Masahito Nagaoka said, "I came to pay for the crime."

Investigative sources with the Hokkaido Prefectural Police are now revealing the nature of that "crime," which appears to have been the murder of his wife and son followed by the dismemberment of their corpses.

At just past 6 p.m. on August 25, Nagaoka, 60, visited a police station in Toyohira Ward to report that the bodies of two relatives were inside his residence. Officers arriving at the building found a corpse of a male and that of a female in the bathroom.

Both bodies, believed to belong to Nagaoka's 19-year-old son, Chikara, and his wife, 58-year-old Konomi, had stab wounds. According to the investigative sources, the corpses had also been carved into pieces with a knife.

Early Sunday, police arrested Nagaoka on suspicion of abandoning and mutilating a corpse. Police believe the crimes were committed on August 25 and 26.

A colleague at Nagaoka's temple told the network that the suspect had taken a one-week vacation prior to the time of the incident.

In addition to confirming the identity of the bodies, police are investigating the circumstances that led to the deaths of the persons. Police expect to also accuse the suspect of murder.

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