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‘Foul smell’ leads to discovery of corpse in Nakano

TOKYO (TR) – Tokyo Metropolitan Police have arrested a 52-year-old man for allegedly abandoning a body likely belonging to his father in the residence they share in Nakano Ward, reports the Sankei Shimbun (Aug. 27).

On August 26, officers working off a tip entered the residence, located in the Shirasagi area, and found the heavily decayed corpse lying face-up atop a mat in a first-floor bedroom. The body did not exhibit any external wounds, according to the Nogata Police Station.

Officers subsequently arrested Koichi Yoshimura, who said that the body is that of his 89-year-old father, on suspicion of abandoning a corpse. “I knew he died, but lodging a report would mean cremation, and I did not want to bid farewell to my father,” the suspect was quoted by police.

Yoshimura began living with his father about 10 years ago. The suspect told police that his father choked on juice earlier this month. “The following day, his body was cold,” he told police.

Officers entered the residence after a neighbor appeared at a police box to lodge a report about a “foul smell” emanating from the premises at around noon on the day of the discovery.

Police are now seeking to confirm the identity of the body.

Update: Yoshimura was not prosecuted in the case. No reason for the non-prosecution was given, reports Fuji News Network (Oct. 31).