TOCHIGI (TR) – Police here have arrested a total of four high school boys on suspicion of robbery and murder following a violent home invasion that left three family members dead or injured, reports the Yomiuri Shimbun (May 17).
According to police, a group of intruders broke into the family’s home in the town of Kaminokawa on May 14 and violently attacked the three residents. Eiko Tomiyama, 69, was fatally stabbed during the robbery, while her two sons also sustained injuries.
An autopsy revealed Tomiyama died from hemorrhagic shock. Highlighting the extreme brutality of the attack, investigators disclosed that she suffered more than 20 stab and slash wounds to her chest and other areas, with some strikes delivered with enough force to penetrate her internal organs.
Seized vehicle
On Saturday, police announced the latest arrests of two other high schoolers, hailing from Sagamihara and Kawasaki cities in Kanagawa Prefecture. All four suspects currently in custody for the crime are 16 years old.
Later that day, authorities seized a white, luxury foreign sedan believed to be the getaway vehicle. The car was towed into the Shimotsuke Police Station with its front and rear license plates concealed by blue tarps.
Investigators located the vehicle in a park parking lot near the Sagamihara home of the second arrested teen. Police are currently investigating the likelihood that the underage boys drove the car to the crime scene themselves.
Hide his face
Earlier that morning, the first youth was sent to the Utsunomiya District Public Prosecutors Office.
Shielded from the press by blue tarps held by officers, the boy shuffled slowly toward a transport vehicle. Though his face was hidden, he was seen wearing a navy track suit with yellow stripes, star-patterned gray socks, and sandals.
The initial suspect was detained shortly after the crime occurred. Officers rushing to the scene spotted the teen walking away from the direction of the house while attempting to hide his face.
A local female resident who witnessed the arrest managed to capture the scene on her smartphone.
“Officers were putting a man into a patrol car,” the woman said. “There were what looked like police dogs, and the atmosphere was extremely tense.”
