OKINAWA (TR) – Okinawa Prefectural Police on Wednesday arrested a prison guard over the fatal stabbing of his mother in their residence Naha City, reports the Yomiuri Shimbun (July 17).
Sometime between 4:00 p.m. on Tuesday and around 8:00 a.m. the following day, Atsushi Higa, 56, is alleged to have used a knife to repeatedly stab the neck and chest of his mother, 85-year-old Sachiko, inside her room in the apartment, located in the Asato area.
Higa, who has been accused of murder, admits to the allegations, police said.
On Wednesday morning, the suspect’s wife tipped off emergency services after finding Sachiko collapsed and bleeding atop her bed. “She’s not breathing,” the suspect’s wife reportedly said.
Sachiko was later confirmed dead at a hospital, police said.
Later that same day, officers took Higa, a guard at the Okinawa Prison, in for voluntary questioning before his arrest.
According to the prison, Higa has been on leave for the past several months.
