Chiba police have arrested two men over a break-in last week at the home of an elderly woman in the city of Kamagaya, Chiba Prefecture, it was learned Wednesday.
One of the suspects said he received instructions for the crime through social media, and police are investigating the case for a possible connection with a series of robberies in the Kanto region.
Suspects Yuichiro Maeda, a 25-year-old nursery school teacher from Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward, and Yusuke Kawai, a 31-year-old company employee from Tokyo’s Katsushika Ward, were taken into police custody by Wednesday.
They allegedly broke into the 86-year-old woman's home around 2:10 a.m. on Oct.14 by breaking a window. They are said to have fled in a car after being noticed by the woman.
According to the police, Maeda has partially admitted to the allegations. "I searched for 'fundraising' on social media platform X and contacted a person whose information appeared. I committed the crime based on their instructions," he reportedly said.
Maeda said he received further instructions through Signal, an encrypted messaging app.
Police have not disclosed Kawai's response to the allegations.
Investigators believe Maeda acted as the main perpetrator while Kawai served as the driver. The two men were not acquainted before the incident.
Police are investigating the case for possible links to a string of recent robberies.
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