TOKYO (TR) – Prosecutors last week did not prosecute a 26-year-old woman for leaving the corpse of her newborn in an apartment in Shinagawa Ward, reports Kyodo News (Dec. 18).
On December 6, Akane Aramaki, of no known occupation, allegedly left the body of the newborn girl inside a black bag in the bathroom of her boyfriend’s apartment.
“I was in some trouble at the time of the birth, so I decided to leave [the body] in the bag for the time being,” Aramaki was quoted by the Oi Police Station in admitting to the allegations.
On December 18, prosecutors with the Tokyo District Public Prosecutor’s Office announced the non-prosecution of Aramaki. No reason for the non-prosecution was given.
According to police, Aramaki was in her sixth or seventh month of pregnancy, with the child believed to have been a stillbirth.
Aramaki was not aware she was pregnant and hadn’t visited a hospital beforehand, police said previously.
“I don’t know what to do”
More than 10 hours after the stillbirth, she notified Jikei Hospital in Kumamoto City, Kumamoto Prefecture by email. “I just had a stillbirth and I don’t know what to do,” she wrote.
The director of the hospital, Ken Hasuda, later told the police that the arrest of Aramaki could lead to more abandonment cases.
“Protection is the priority,” Hasuda said at a press conference on December 10. “[The police] should have listened to her, not arrested her.”
Hasuda expressed relief after learning of Aramaki’s non-prosecution. “I told her that I would support her,” the director said.
