News On Japan

Fukuoka: Boy, 15, fatally stabbed woman after ‘rejected sexual advances’

Sep 02 (tokyoreporter.com) - A boy in custody in connection with the fatal stabbing of a woman in Fukuoka City last week says he carried out the act after she denied him sexually, investigative sources have revealed, reports Television Nishinippon (Sept. 1).

According to the sources, the boy, a 15-year-old middle school student, has admitted to stabbing Misato Yoshimatsu, 21, at mall Markis Fukuoka Momochi in Chuo Ward on August 28.

“I stabbed her after she rejected my sexual advances,” said the boy, who was not acquainted with the victim.

At around 7:30 p.m. that day, police received a report about a man wielding a knife. At around that time, Yoshimitsu, a resident of Minami Ward, was found collapsed and bleeding inside a first-floor women’s restroom.

Yoshimatsu, who had suffered stab wounds to multiple parts of her upper body, was later confirmed dead at a hospital, police said previously.

The victim had wounds to her hands, which have led police to believe that she attempted to fend off an attack. The cause of death was shock due to loss of blood.

Two knives

Officers arriving at the scene apprehended the boy, who was in possession of two knives, including one with a blade measuring 18.5 centimeters in length. On Sunday, police sent him to prosecutors on suspicion of violating the Swords and Firearms Control Law.

A DNA analysis conducted on blood found one of the knives proved to be a match for Yoshimitsu, the sources said.

Based on evidence at the mall, including bloodstains on the floor of the women’s restroom, the boy is believed to have attacked Yoshimitsu inside.

News On Japan
POPULAR NEWS

Typhoon No. 24 (Fung-shen) is strengthening over the South China Sea and is expected to make landfall in Vietnam later this week, according to forecasts. Satellite images on October 20th show extensive cloud coverage over the central South China Sea. After passing over the Philippines, Fung-shen temporarily weakened but is projected to intensify again as it continues westward through Tuesday.

Tokyo’s seas and rivers, once considered lawless backwaters beyond the reach of regular policing, are now under constant watch by a dedicated force known as the “water police,” specialists who patrol the capital’s waterways, chase down smugglers, stop reckless jet ski riders, and carry out dramatic rescue missions to save lives.

Kyoto’s world-famous Arashiyama district, a popular destination for both domestic and international tourists, is facing a growing problem of graffiti etched into the bamboo along its iconic “Bamboo Grove Path,” with more than 350 stalks now damaged — a practice that experts warn could eventually cause bamboo to weaken, fall, and even injure visitors.

Japan’s streaming industry is under growing pressure as foreign giants tighten their grip on the domestic market, with Netflix’s latest move to secure exclusive broadcast rights in Japan for every game of the World Baseball Classic next March highlighting the widening gap.

Investigators from the Immigration Services Agency conducted on-site inspections in Osaka on October 14th amid a surge in so-called 'paper companies' created by foreign nationals seeking residency.

MEDIA CHANNELS
         

MORE Society NEWS

The October issue of the long-established American lifestyle magazine Town & Country features Mako Komuro, the eldest daughter of the Akishino family, on the cover under the headline "Princess Ingognito," dedicating a six-page spread to Komuro and her husband Kei, exploring their life in the United States.

Police have arrested a former host and several associates for allegedly coercing female customers into sex work after exploiting their romantic feelings and saddling them with massive debts.

A violent attack early on October 20th in Ibaraki Town, Ibaraki Prefecture left one man dead and another injured after they were stabbed with what appeared to be a bladed weapon inside an apartment. Police are investigating the case as a murder.

A woman in her 40s suffered a serious injury after being trapped in a mechanical parking system in Tokyo’s Shinagawa Ward on October 19th.

A former pet shop owner convicted of repeatedly sexually assaulting several female employees and sentenced to 30 years in prison appealed his case at the Fukuoka High Court on October 14th, again claiming that the acts were consensual.

The relocation of Arimasu Tobiru, a distinctive architectural landmark on Hijirizaka in Tokyo’s Minato Ward, was carried out between August and October after nearly two decades of construction.

A Brazilian man has been arrested and indicted for smuggling cocaine into Japan by swallowing the drugs and concealing them inside his body.

Prosecutors have demanded the death penalty for a man accused of killing three family members and seriously injuring another with a crossbow in 2020 in Takarazuka, Hyogo Prefecture.