HIROSHIMA (TR) – Osaka Prefectural Police on Thursday revealed that a tip originating in Osaka Prefecture has led to the discovery of a corpse in Hiroshima Prefecture, reports TV Asahi (Aug. 28).
On Wednesday, a search team found the body, whose skull and limbs were missing, in a mountainous area of Higashihiroshima City.
According to police, the skeletal remains likely belong to a man in his 40s from Osaka Prefecture who went missing earlier this month.
Police are now investigating the circumstances surrounding the death of the man, who is an acquaintance of Yutaka Morimoto, a 43-year-old resident of Fukuoka City’s Chuo Ward.
“Killed an acquaintance”
On August 20, a relative of Morimoto appeared at the Yao Police Station in Yao City, Osaka. “[Morimoto] killed an acquaintance and discarded his body,” the relative reportedly said.
Investigators later found Morimoto at an apartment in Ikuno Ward, Osaka City that he frequented. However, upon the arrival of police, Morimoto attempted to commit suicide by strangling himself.
Morimoto was later transported to a hospital after suffering minor injuries. On August 21, police arrested him on suspicion of violating the Stimulants Control Law.
During questioning, he explained that he had lent the man a substantial amount of money that was not repaid. He added that the man was assaulted and died.
Abandoning a corpse
On Thursday, police accused Morimoto and 46-year-old Kozue Yasuda, who lives in the Ikuno residence, of abandoning a corpse.
Police allege that Morimoto used a vehicle to carry the body of the man a distance of more than 300 kilometers from the Ikuno residence to the mountains of Higashihiroshima.
The man went missing around August 5. Police said on Friday that security camera footage shot near the residence shows Morimoto and another man carrying what could be a body on August 8.
Another unknown man is also shown in the footage. An investigation into these two men is also ongoing.
Police have also accused the former husband of Yasuda, 59-year-old Hideaki Yasuda, of concealing her.
