A couple in their 50s were stabbed to death in apparent murders in the city of Kashiwa, Chiba Prefecture, on Wednesday afternoon, prefectural police have said.
Toshiaki Watarai and his wife, Reiko, both 59 years old, were found stabbed on the premises of a private home and were later confirmed dead at hospital, the police and others said.
There were wounds to Toshiaki's stomach and Reiko's chest, according to the police and others.
Also Wednesday afternoon, a fire occurred some 600 meters away from the scene of the stabbings, burning down eight houses and leaving a man in his 70s and a woman in her 80s injured, according to the Kashiwa Fire Department.
The police are looking to see whether the two incidents are linked.
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