AICHI (TR) – Last week, police revealed that the results of a DNA analysis confirmed that the body found in the trunk of a car parked in Ichinomiya City is that of Miyu Nishiwaki, a missing 19-year-old woman.
On April 16, police accused Takaya Fujii, 24, of abandoning a corpse. Police previously said that Fujii has stated that he was troubled by his relationship with Nishiwaki and strangled her to death in August of last year.
Fuji lives in Toyota City. He is believed to have met Nishiwaki, who was a resident of Hashima City, Gifu Prefecture, on social media about two years ago and was in a relationship with her.
In the latest development, Tokai TV (Apr. 24) reports that the suspect may have covered up the incident for a significant amount of time by posing as the victim with her smartphone.
Sensed something was wrong
Aoi Mizutani has been Nishiwaki’s best friend since kindergarten.
“We last met around the end of July or early August,” Mizutani tells the network. “We had made plans to go out together as a trio on September 19, but we later lost contact.”
Mizutani, Nishiwaki and another friend had made plans to go to the pool on that day, but Nishiwaki never showed up.
“I asked her [on chat app Line], ‘Did you forget your plans?’ She responded, ‘Oh!’ Then I thought, ‘Something’s not right,’ but she didn’t answer my phone calls…”
Mizutani sensed something was wrong even before the appointed day. On September 6 and 7, they had the following exchange on Line about getting to the location:
Nishiwaki: “Train or bus?”
Mizutani: “What happened to your car?”
Nishiwaki: “No way.”
Mizutani: “Didn’t we talk about renting a car?”
Nishiwaki’s body was found in the trunk on April 16. Her family lodged a missing persons report with Gifu Prefectural Police on April 14.
Police believe Nishiwaki was alive at least until mid-August. Police suspect that Fujii was chatting from her smartphone to delay the discovery of the crime. Earlier that month, on August 8, Nishiwaki consulted with Mizutani about Fujii.
“No matter how much I talked to him, he wouldn’t listen, saying he was going to die,” she wrote.
She continued, “In the end, we couldn’t break up…”
Ominously, she added, “I almost got killed. He really strangled me lol”
Bruises on her body
Previously, Mizutani asked Nishiwaki about the bruises she could see on her body. She said, “My boyfriend hit me,” according to Mizutani.
Mizutani also said, “I heard that he said things like, “If I break up with Nishiwaki, I’ll die” and “When I get angry, I hit her.”
In 2024, Nishiwaki consulted the Gifu Prefectural Police several times about troubles surrounding her relationship with Fujii. Police responded each time.
“I would like to meet and talk again,” Mizutani said. “It must have been cramped…she was in the trunk. She had originally called out for help… I think there was more that could have done.”
Police are investigating Fujii with the possibility of filing charges for murder.
