OSAKA (TR) – Osaka Prefectural Police on Monday said that extreme head trauma was the cause of death of an elderly man whose body was found in Nishinari Ward the day before, reports the Sankei Shimbun (Feb. 16).
At approximately 10:50 a.m., a nurse visiting the apartment of Satoshi Sugawara, 71, found him collapsed face up atop his bed.
The results of a legally ordered autopsy indicated that the victim had suffered repeated blows to the head that had caused internal bleeding.
Sugawara was living alone in the apartment, which is located in the Hanazonokita area.
Due to the effects of a stroke, a nurse checked Sugawara twice each day, according to Nippon News Network (Feb. 17). He last received care the night before.
According to police, the apartment’s front door was unlocked at the time of the discovery of his body but the interior of the apartment was not disturbed.
The Hanazonokita area is within Japan’s biggest slum. Day laborers and homeless men can be seen roaming the area’s alleys of flophouses and rundown eateries. It is regarded as a popular location for the sale of stolen goods and stimulant drugs.