AICHI (TR) – Aichi Prefectural Police on Wedesday arrested a 51-year-old woman and her former boyfriend over the alleged murder of her wealthy husband in Inazawa City three years ago, reports TV Asahi (Sept. 18).
Sometime between February 6 and February 13, Yuko Sugai, a nurse, and Tsutomu Asano, 65, the owner of a hair salon, allegedly worked together to fatally stab her husband, 60-year-old Koji Tsunoda, at the residence of the victim in the town of Shimizucho.
On the night of February 13, Sugai and Asano set the house on fire. Tsunoda’s body was retrieved from the living room.
The results of an autopsy revealed that Tsunoda suffered at least four stab wounds. The cause of death was deemed to have been loss of blood through a wound delivered to a lung.
The suspects, who have been accused of murder, deny the allegations, police said.
Inheritance
At the time of the fire, Sugai, who lives in Nagoya’s Minami Ward, was in a relationship with Asano. After Sugai married Tsunoda in July, 2015, they did not live together.
Tsunoda taught at a juku cram school. After the death of his mother several years before the incident, he lived alone.
After the incident, Sugai inherited a plot of land measuring nearly 10,000 square meters. She sold a portion of the property for about 6 million yen last June.
As well, Sugai received a life insurance payout of 30 million yen following the death of her husband.
Initially, police considered that the case was the result of an accident. However, investigators gradually accumulated evidence that showed that Tsunoda had been murdered.
Police believe that money was the motive for the crime.
