NARA (TR) – Mie Prefectural Police over the weekend announced the arrest a 37-year-old man after the corpses of two missing women, including his girlfriend, were found wrapped in a sheet along a riverbank in Nara City, reports Nippon News Network (July 20).
In the latest development, police have revealed that the discovery was preceded by the suspect, Takahiro Imakita, reporting that an unknown man had thrown liquid on him shortly before the women disappeared.
Imakita, a company employee residing in Nara City, has admitted to allegations of abandoning a corpse. “I put the two of them in my car and transported them together,” Imakita told investigators, adding, “I abandoned them by myself.”
The grim discovery was made on July 17 in the bushes along the banks of the Nabari River. The victims were identified as 44-year-old Sonomi Ikeda, a resident of Iga City in neighboring Mie Prefecture, and a woman believed to be her 20-year-old university student daughter.
Thrown liquid
Imakita is officially accused of dumping Ikeda’s corpse sometime in early February. The dumping site is located along a road connecting Imakita’s home in Nara and his nursing care workplace in Iga, a distance of about 30 kilometers.
The case took a sensational turn as investigators revealed a bizarre sequence of events leading up to the women’s disappearance.
On February 6, Ikeda contacted police to report a suspicious man peering into her parked car. The following day, Imakita called the police, claiming that a man had thrown liquid into Ikeda’s face at her front door. Ikeda reportedly fell and hit her head during the altercation.
The mother and daughter were last confirmed alive on February 9, when they were seen out with Imakita in Mie Prefecture.
“I can’t get in touch”
On February 10, police visited Ikeda’s residence to process paperwork regarding the liquid assault but found the home empty. Imakita was standing outside the residence at the time and told officers, “I can’t get in touch with her either.”
Relatives officially filed a missing person report on May 15. Police brought Imakita in for voluntary questioning on May 14, which ultimately led to the discovery of the bodies three days later. Investigators believe the corpses were dumped within a week of the women’s disappearance in February.
Despite the gruesome allegations, Imakita lived with his own family in Nara and had been working at his company as usual until just four days before his arrest. Neighbors described him as a kind father who frequently played with local children in the park.
“Suddenly stopped coming”
Meanwhile, neighbors in Mie Prefecture recognized Imakita’s car, noting that he frequently visited Ikeda’s home to help with yard work before he “suddenly stopped coming.”
Police have not yet identified the suspect in the February liquid assault and are investigating whether it is connected to the dumping of the bodies.
Investigators are continuing to grill Imakita, believing he knows exactly how the mother and daughter died.
