TOKYO (TR) – A man and a woman plunged to their deaths from an apartment building in Shinjuku Ward on Tuesday, a case that is being treated as a suicide, police said.
At around 8:25 p.m., a passerby called police after finding the man and woman, believed to be aged in their 20s, collapsed on the grounds of the 12-story building, which is managed by the metropolitan government, reports Kyodo News (Aug. 20).
Both persons were later confirmed dead. The Totsuka Police Station is now seeking to identify both persons.
Shoes and bags believed to belong to the two people were found on an exterior staircase of the building between 11th and 12th floors. Police suspect that they jumped to their deaths from that staircase.
What appeared to be a suicide note written by the man was found inside one of the bags, police said.
Separate incident in June
In a similar incident earlier this year, two women died after plunging from a tower apartment building in the same ward.
At around 7:35 p.m. on June 11, a man alerted police after finding the two women collapsed on the grounds of the apartment building in Nishi Shinjuku. According to the Shinjuku Police Station, both women were confirmed dead at a hospital about an hour later, reports Kyodo News (June 11).
The women, clothed in pajamas, are believed to be residents of the apartment building and acquaintances. Police believe that they jumped from a balcony of a unit in the apartment building.
An examination of the outside of the unit showed no signs of an intruder entering or a break-in, police said.
