Fukuoka man, 59, killed parents because caring for them ‘interrupted anime viewing’

Jul 27, 2021 | News On Japan

Jul 27, 2021 (tokyoreporter.com) - FUKUOKA (TR) – A 59-year-old man in custody for allegedly leaving the corpses of his parents inside a refrigerator in their residence in Fukuoka City last month has admitting to killing them, police have revealed, reports the Asahi Shimbun

According to police, Junji Matsumoto, of no known occupation, used unspecified means to kill both of his parents — 88-year-old Hirokazu and 87-year-old Makie — around the night of June 21.

The suspect said he carried out the crime due to stress caused by serving as a nurse. “It became troublesome when caring for my parents always interrupted my anime viewing. I couldn’t stand it so I killed them,” he said.

On June 28, officers working off a tip entered the residence in Fukuoka City’s Nishi Ward and found the bodies inside the glass-door industrial refrigerator.

Police later confirmed that the bodies are those of the suspect’s parents. The results of autopsies did not reveal the causes of death.

Matsumoto shared the residence with his parents. A witness told police that they saw him out shopping at a department store in Tenjin with Makie on June 20.

Earlier on June 28, a relative contacted police after the occupants of the residence had “dropped out of contact” for an extended period.

Upon the arrival of police, the refrigerator was taped shut. An examination of the bodes showed no signs of external wounds.

Matsumoto fled the residence by bicycle on the night of June 23. He then traveled by train across the country, including to Yamaguchi, Shizuoka, Akita and Yamagata prefectures.

Strangled his father with an electrical cord

At around 9:00 a.m. on July 5, police apprehended Matsumoto in a hotel parking lot in Kyoto City. Upon his arrest on suspicion of abandoning a corpse, Matsumoto admitted to the allegations.

During the subsequent investigation, it was learned that Matsumoto decided to kill his parents after his father, Hirokazu, asked him for help in using the bathroom.

He told police that he strangled his father with an electrical cord.

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