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Fukuoka: Police seek help of public in corpse-dismemberment case

FUKUOKA (TR) – One year after the discovery of the dismembered corpse of a 29-year-old woman, Fukuoka Prefectural Police are seeking the help of the public in obtaining information about the case, reports the Sankei Shimbun (Sept. 29).

On September 29, 2017, the dismembered corpse of Harumi Tonoike was found in the Yoshida River near a residential area in Kitakyushu City’s Kokuraminami Ward.

An examination of the bones revealed that they had been cut, police said at the time. Police later revealed that the results of a DNA analysis confirmed that the body belongs to Tonoike, a resident of the town of Soeda.

The residence of Tonoike, who lived alone, is approximately 30 kilometers away from where her body was discovered. The residence was found to have not been ransacked, police said.

On the one-year anniversary of the discovery, Tonoike’s father placed flowers at a bridge of the river in Kokuraminami. “I will not forgive the criminal,” he said. “I want the truth and compensation for their sins.”

Harumi Tonoike
Harumi Tonoike (Twitter)

Tattoo of a cross

An image released by police, which was taken in June, 2017, shows her carrying a bag in an undisclosed location in the prefecture. Standing 151 centimeters tall, she has a tattoo of a cross on her left arm.

“In hoping to end the suffering of Harumi’s family, we are seeking any sort of information, even if it seems small,” said Michihiro Ohama, the chief of the Kokuraminami Police Station.

The case is being treated as abandoning a corpse. Persons with information are advised to call the Kokuraminami Police Station at 093-923-0110.