FUKUOKA (TR) — Police here have arrested a 30-year-old woman on suspicion of murdering her 4-year-old daughter at a mother-and-child support facility in Kama City last month, reports NHK (Apr. 22).
On March 10, Naoko Mizunuma, a part-time worker, and her two young daughters were found collapsed inside their room at the Kama City shelter.
The two girls were rushed to a hospital but were confirmed dead approximately an hour and a half later.
According to police, Mizunuma is accused of strangling her eldest daughter, Niiro, with an electrical cord in the early hours of that same day. She also slashed her own neck with a knife.
Upon her arrest on suspicion of murder on April 22, Mizunuma admitted to the allegations. The suspect has also hinted at killing her 3-year-old daughter, Mihana.
An autopsy revealed the cause of death for both children was asphyxiation due to strangulation. Mizunuma survived the incident with only minor cuts to her own neck.
Police suspect the incident was a double murder disguised as an attempted murder-suicide.
“I was surprised”
During a press conference, police revealed that Mizunuma had initially entered the domestic violence shelter with Niiro in 2022 to escape abuse from her common-law husband, the children’s biological father.
While the facility strictly prohibits men and permits only mothers and children, police believe the husband had been secretly living with them since around 2023. The second daughter, Mihana, was reportedly born after he moved in.
The common-law husband claims he did not witness the killings. “I was surprised when I woke up,” he told police regarding his discovery of the children’s bodies.
Investigative sources further revealed that Mizunuma and her husband had an argument prior to the incident. “My common-law husband told me he hated me, and it made me want to die,” she allegedly confessed.
Police are continuing to investigate the exact motive and the circumstances surrounding the death of the younger daughter.
