SAITAMA (TR) – Saitama Prefectural Police have arrested a 32-year-old man in connection with the murder of his 9-year-old stepson at their apartment building in Saitama City, reports TBS News (Sept. 20).
At around 12:40 a.m. on Wednesday, police found the body of Ryosuke Shindo, a fourth-year elementary school student, inside a utility space near the entrance of his residence in the building, located in Minuma Ward.
The next day, police accused Yusuke Shindo, of no known occupation, of abandoning a corpse. He was sent to prosecutors on Friday. The suspect admits to the allegations, police said.
Police also said that the results of an autopsy revealed that the boy died due to suffocation from pressure applied to the neck, possibly by a rope.
Ryosuke lived with his parents in a unit on the second floor. At around 8:20 p.m. on Tuesday, his mother alerted police. “My son did not return from English school,” she reportedly said.
Police then began searching for the boy. After the discovery of his body, investigators began interviewing the boy’s parents.
During initial questioning, Yusuke denied the allegations. However, he later said, “I was angry because he told me that I am not his real dad. Since I killed [him], I hid the body so that it would not be found.”
Police are continuing the investigation on suspicion of murder.
