ISHIKAWA (TR) – A 75-year-old man in custody for allegedly abandoning the body of his ill wife in Nanao City last week has hinted at involvement in her murder, police have revealed, reports TV Asahi (June 1).
According to Ishikawa Prefectural Police, Mitsuo Nagaiwa arrived at a police station on the night of June 30 to report that he had left the body of his wife, 74-year-old Shizuko, at the home of his older brother.
Officers arriving at the found the body of Shizuko in the bathroom. Her neck had been gashed, police said.
In the latest development, Nagaiwa has admitted involvement in the death of his wife. “I killed my wife, and I, too, wanted to die,” the suspect was quoted by police. He was sent to prosecutors on suspicion of abandoning a corpse on June 1.
Nagaiwa and his wife are from Kanazawa City. They came to his brother’s residence for a visit.
Nagaiwa previously told police that he had become exhausted from taking care of his wife, who suffered from an unspecified illness. When he surrendered to police, his daughter and son-in-law were also present.
Police found two box cutters inside the residence. In continuing the investigation on suspicion of murder, police will determine if the items were used in the killing of Shizuko.