TOKYO (TR) – A 67-year-old man was murdered after he reported a burglar inside his residence in Ome City early Sunday, police said, reports Jiji Press (Dec. 14).
At around 1:55 a.m., Kazuo Ogawa, telephoned police from the residence, located in the Nariki area. “There’s middle-aged man in a blue jacket, white hat and mask [inside]. He appears to be a thief,” he said.
Officers arriving at the scene about 15 minutes later found Ogawa collapsed and bleeding from the head in the kitchen room. He was later confirmed dead at a hospital.
Ogawa suffered a skull fracture, which has led police to believe he was beaten with a blunt object.
An examination of security camera footage showed a white car that was parked about 150 meters from the residence leaving the scene about 7 minutes after the telephone call was placed.
A male neighbor, aged in his 60s, told the Sankei Shimbun (Dec. 14) that local residents knew that Ogawa kept around 100 million yen in cash on the premises. “He had three or four briefcases [containing the cash], the neighbor said. “There was speculation that he also carried around a lot of cash when attending alumni functions.”
Ogawa worked at a transportation company until he retired at the age of 60. He had been living alone in the residence since the death of his mother about 10 years ago.
