OSAKA (TR) – Investigative sources with the Hyogo Prefectural Police have revealed that an American man in custody over the disappearance of a 27-year-old woman is believed to have been seen in security camera footage taken near where body parts likely belonging to the woman were found, reports TV Asahi (Feb. 28).
Last week, police arrested Yevgeniy Vasilievich Bayraktar, 26, in connection with the disappearance of the woman, a resident of Sanda City, Hyogo Prefecture, who was last seen earlier this month.
On Saturday, officers found what is believed to be the head of the woman inside a suitcase in a residence in Osaka’s Nishinari Ward. The following day, a torso, two arms and two legs were found in mountainous areas of Osaka and Kyoto prefectures.
Police believe Bayraktar carried the victim’s body parts out of a different residence in Osaka’s Higashinari Ward before dumping them in the mountains and the Nishinari residence.
In the latest development, a person believed to be Bayraktar was spotted in security camera footage heading in the direction of the Shimamoto area of Osaka at around 2:00 p.m. on February 20, according to the investigative sources. The area is where the torso and two arms were found on February 25. The person in the footage is seen wearing a breathing mask and knitted hat. He is also carrying a backpack.
Considering that the remains were found near railway lines, including the JR Tokaido Line, police believe the suspect used trains to transport the body parts.
Social-networking service
During his time in Japan, Bayraktar is believed to have rented several residences, including those in Nishinari and Higashinari, on a short-term basis.
According to a previous report, the missing woman has been out of contact since she left her office on February 15. That day, an acquaintance received a message from the woman that said she was going to meet an American she got to know via a social-networking service, according to TBS News (Feb. 26).
The acquaintance never heard from the woman again. The mother of the woman contacted police on February 17 after her daughter’s company said that she failed to arrive at work.
Security camera footage showed two persons, believed to be her and the suspect, entering the Higashinari residence early on February 16. Two days later, the suspect was seen carrying a large bag out of the residence. The footage does not show the woman ever leaving the premises.
“Abandoning the corpse of the woman”
On February 22, Hyogo police searched the Higashinari residence. However, the woman was not found inside. That same day, police apprehended Bayraktar in Nara Prefecture on suspicion of confining the woman in the Higashinari residence.
Upon his arrest, the suspect denied the allegations of confinement. However, he has since admitted to “abandoning the corpse of the woman” he was with. Police plan to re-arrest the suspect on suspicion of abandoning and mutilating a corpse.