TOCHIGI, May 15, 2026 (News On Japan) - A 16-year-old boy has been arrested on suspicion of robbery-murder after a group of intruders broke into a house in Kamimikawa Town, Tochigi Prefecture, on May 14th, killing a 69-year-old woman and injuring two other family members in what police suspect may have been a crime carried out by a loosely connected criminal group known as "Tokuryu."
Police arrested the suspect, a self-proclaimed high school student from Sagamihara in Kanagawa Prefecture, on suspicion of robbery-murder.
Investigators allege that shortly before 9:30 a.m. on May 14th, the teenager and several accomplices forced their way into the home in Kamimikawa Town and were searching for valuables when they encountered resident Eiko Tomiyama, 69. The suspects are accused of fatally stabbing her with what police described as some form of weapon.
The boy was reportedly taken into custody shortly after the incident after officers spotted him walking near the scene while attempting to hide his face with his hands.
Tomiyama was found in a ransacked room with a stab wound to the chest. Her eldest and second sons were also attacked, reportedly beaten with a crowbar-like object and suffering injuries to their arms and heads.
Police believe multiple people were involved in the break-in. Shortly before the attack, witnesses reported seeing a suspicious individual dressed entirely in black, wearing a balaclava and carrying what appeared to be a crowbar in the neighborhood.
Investigators also revealed that suspicious cars and motorcycles had been seen around Tomiyama's home and the residence of her second son several times between late April and early May.
Police said there was no known connection between Tomiyama and the teenage suspect. Authorities are continuing to search for the remaining suspects and are investigating the possibility that the crime was carried out by a Tokuryu group, a term used in Japan to describe loosely organized criminal networks formed through social media and underground recruitment channels.
Source: TBS
