A couple in their 80s and their 52-year-old daughter were found dead at their home in the city of Kikugawa, Shizuoka Prefecture, on Sunday in an apparent murder case, with police searching for a suspect who remained at large on Monday.

According to NHK, at approximately 2:25 p.m. on Sunday, the family's eldest daughter, who was out at the time of the incident, called the police after her sister — the 52-year-old victim — had informed her by phone that a man was acting violently at the house.

Upon entering the home, officers found Shoichi Shibuya, 87, his wife Ikuko, 81, and their daughter Rumiko on the floor and unresponsive. All three were later pronounced dead at a hospital.

According to the police, a knife was found at the scene, and the victims appeared to have been stabbed. A man in his 20s, believed to be a relative, fled the scene. Police are looking for the man on suspicion of murder.

The Shibuya household comprised the three deceased, as well as the couple's eldest daughter. The suspect did not live with the family, and there had been no previous reports of any issues involving him.

The Shibuya home is located in a residential area approximately 1.5 kilometers south of the JR Tokaido Line's Kikugawa Station.