Police are investigating a 28-year-old man over his alleged involvement in the death of a 15-year-old girl whose body was found in a rental car in the town of Kaminokawa, Tochigi Prefecture, last week.
Tatsuya Yasuzumi, who is unemployed, was in the driver’s seat when police found a suspicious-looking parked car. As he was being questioned, the police found the body of Azuki Sakamaki, who is from Kashiwa, Chiba Prefecture, early Thursday. Yasuzumi was arrested on the spot for allegedly abandoning the body. An autopsy revealed that the girl was strangled to death around Oct. 17.
On Sunday, investigators searched Yasuzumi’s home in Kumagaya, Saitama Prefecture, before carrying out two cardboard boxes full of items.
Investigators say he has admitted to the charges of abandoning the body. They are investigating how the two met, as well as the circumstances that led to Sakamaki's death. Local media reports said they may have met on social media.
When police found Sakamaki, she was wearing what appeared to be her school uniform and had cuts and bruises on her body.
It was reported that Yasuzumi was arrested in 2015 for kidnapping a minor and indecent sexual assault after driving a sixth-grade school girl around in a car in Yokohama.
Local daily Shimotsuke Shimbun reported that Yasuzumi also had cuts on his hands and other places, and that police are looking into the case with the possibility that the suspect killed Sakamaki.
Her identification was found in the car along with a number of mobile phones.
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