On May 3, police allege that Etsuko Egawa, a 43-year-old employee in the real estate industry, and Mayumi Kosugiyama, 37, stabbed 45-year-old Hiroko Egawa in the head with a fruit knife and strangled her with a belt inside a residence in the Kohoku area of Adachi Ward.
Etsuko and Hiroko Egawa shared the residence in which the crime was committed. Over a period leading up to the murder, police believe that the perpetrators communicated via the application Line.
Data retrieved from the mobile phones of the suspects revealed that they had exchanged information on the activities of the victim, such as whether she had entered the shower or not. “This ends today,” one message said.
All three suspects have reportedly denied the allegations. “My sister died, but there was no murderous intent,” Etsuko is quoted by police, according to the Sankei Shimbun (July 31).
After the crime, Kaoru Fukazawa, the 44-year-old common-law husband of Etsuko, telephoned emergency services. Police arriving at the scene found Hiroko Egawa dead in the entrance.
Fukazawa was also arrested.
Police believe the suspects had arranged the evidence inside the residence such that it would point to a suicide. A letter, purportedly written by Hiroko Egawa and indicating a desire to die, was also found at the scene, and a knife covered in blood was discovered near Hiroko Egawa’s body.
