News On Japan

Woman who left daughter, 3, to die in residence blocked escape with furniture

Jul 10 (tokyoreporter.com) - A 24-year-old woman in custody after she caused the death of her 3-year-old daughter by leaving her alone at their residence for more than one week barricaded her inside with furniture, police have revealed, reports Fuji News Network (July 9).

According to police, Saki Kakehashi, a 24-year-old bar employee, allegedly left her daughter Noa alone at the residence in Ota Ward between June 5 and 13 while she was in Kagoshima Prefecture with her boyfriend.

At around 3:55 p.m. on June 13, Kakehashi telephoned emergency services to report that Noa was not breathing. Personnel arriving at the residence transported the girl to a hospital where she was confirmed dead.

In the latest development, police said on Thursday that Kakehashi barricaded Noa inside a room with a sofa blocking the door so that she could not get out. “I thought it would be dangerous if she got into the kitchen,” the suspect told police.

Saki Kakehashi (Twitter)

Dehydration and hunger

Earlier this week, police said that the results of an autopsy revealed that Noa died due to dehydration and hunger.

Upon her arrest on suspicion of negligence as a guardian resulting in death on Tuesday, Kakehashi admitted to the allegations. “I didn’t think [she would] die. I thought [she would be] fine,” the suspect was quoted. She was sent to prosecutors on Thursday.

Police also previously said that the suspect also visited her boyfriend in Kagoshima for three days in May, during which time she also abandoned Noa.

Also on Thursday, police said that Kakehashi waited a full hour after finding Noa to not be breathing before alerting emergency services.

After she made the call, the suspect apparently used unspecified means to try to take her life. She was then hospitalized. Police arrested her upon her release on Tuesday.

Source: ANNnewsCH

News On Japan
POPULAR NEWS

Bear sightings across Japan have already climbed to nearly twice the level recorded during the same period last year, prompting entry bans in mountain areas behind Kyoto’s Ninna-ji Temple and the cancellation of hiking events in Kansai, while new research suggests that the key to reducing encounters may lie in understanding what bears eat in each region.

Copper roofing panels were stolen from several shrines in Hamamatsu, Shizuoka Prefecture, including a city-designated cultural property, in the latest case amid a nationwide surge in copper thefts targeting shrines and temples across Japan, where soaring metal prices have fueled crimes that leave historic religious buildings damaged, exposed to the elements, and facing repair costs of millions of yen.

Flames broke out on the morning of May 20th on Miyajima Island in Hiroshima Prefecture, home to one of Japan's World Heritage sites, destroying Reikado Hall near the summit of Mount Misen.

Uncertainty surrounding the situation in the Middle East is beginning to affect daily life in Japan, as concerns over crude oil supplies spread to restaurants, cleaning services and even household garbage disposal systems across the Kansai region.

A 25-year-old woman arrested as a suspected ringleader in a robbery-murder case in Tochigi Prefecture once posted cheerful dance videos on social media and was remembered by those who knew her as an energetic and outgoing young woman.

MEDIA CHANNELS
         

MORE Society NEWS

A fire that broke out in Kagamino, Okayama Prefecture, shortly after noon on May 20th destroyed three buildings, including a home, after flames from open burning spread to dead leaves and then to nearby structures.

Six people, including a senior member of a group affiliated with the Sumiyoshi-kai crime syndicate's Kohei-ikka faction, have been arrested on suspicion of opening a gang office in a prohibited area near a nursery school in Tokyo's Itabashi Ward.

A man who visited a police station in Hiratsuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, in the early hours of May 21st allegedly sprayed a transparent liquid inside the building, causing six police officers to complain of eye and throat pain and be taken to hospital with minor injuries.

The Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department held a review ceremony for its riot police units at Meiji Jingu Gaien in Tokyo on May 20th, with around 1,700 officers marching in formation as part of a large-scale demonstration of security preparedness.

A 25-year-old woman arrested as a suspected ringleader in a robbery-murder case in Tochigi Prefecture once posted cheerful dance videos on social media and was remembered by those who knew her as an energetic and outgoing young woman.

Two women were found dead with stab wounds at a house in Tatsuno, Hyogo Prefecture, on May 19th, with police suspecting they were victims of a violent crime.

Bear attacks continue to occur across Japan, while a new problem has emerged as false reports of bear sightings flood local alert systems, placing growing pressure on municipal authorities and emergency responders.

A man in his 30s was referred to prosecutors after allegedly feeding a chocolate snack to a marmot at an animal cafe in Osaka Prefecture, despite the risk that the treat could cause poisoning or even death in the squirrel-family animal.