A 15-year-old boy allegedly attacked a family of six with a knife in Notsu, Oita Prefecture, as they slept early Monday, leaving three people dead and one in critical condition, police said.
After receiving an emergency call from the family of Kazumasa Iwasaki around 2:50 a.m., police found Iwasaki's wife, Sumiko, 66, his daughter Tomoko, 41, and Tomoko's son Junya, 13, already dead from stab wounds in their house in Notsu, they said.
Iwasaki, a 65-year-old farmer, was rushed to the hospital after sustaining serious injuries to the head. He remains hospitalized in critical condition.
Tomoko's 16-year-old daughter, Mai, was injured in the throat while her younger son Seiya, 11, sustained wounds in the back, police said. They were also taken to a nearby hospital.