IWATE (TR) – Iwate Prefectural Police have launched a murder investigation after a body likely belonging to an elderly woman was found with stab wounds in her residence in Ichinoseki City, reports Kyodo News (Aug. 21).
On Monday, officers working off a tip found the decayed body likely belonging to Yoshiko Oikawa, 80, in the two-floor residence, located in the Minami Jukkenkoji area, with several stab wounds to the head.
According to police, Oikawa lives alone. Given that she cannot be reached, police suspect that the body is hers.
The discovery was made after an acquaintance telephoned the Ichinoseki Police Station on Monday morning to report that Oikawa had been out of contact for several days.
Oikawa consulted with police several times in the past about a matter. However, police did not disclose the nature of the consultation.
Police are now working to confirm the identity of the body.