SHIMANE (TR) – Shimane Prefectural Police last week arrested a 24-year-old female nurse after the corpse of a newborn was found inside a vehicle in Yasugi City, reports the Chugoku Shimbun (July 23).
At around 12:20 a.m. on July 23, police found the body of the infant inside the vehicle of Rika Takeda. The car was stopped in the parking lot for a convenience store.
The gender of the infant, which weighed about 450 grams, is unknown, the Yasugi Police Station said.
Police then accused Takeda of abandoning a corpse. During questioning, she admitted to the allegations. “I gave birth to the baby alone inside the car on around July 19 while it was stopped at a rest area,” she said.
On July 22, a male acquaintance of Takeda alerted the Matsue Police Station. “After she became pregnant, I was told she had an abortion, but I [later] heard she gave birth and the baby died,” he said.
Police are now seeking to determine the cause of death of the child.