Overview
- Police in Ibaraki Prefecture arrested 28-year-old Takumi Ouchi in connection with the December 31 death of 31-year-old manicurist Haruka Komatsumoto in Mito City.
- Ouchi, identified as Komatsumoto’s former boyfriend, denies the allegations and was quoted as saying he knows nothing about them.
- Investigators say security camera footage recorded around the time of the attack implicated Ouchi.
- Police reported that Komatsumoto’s wallet, bankbook, and phone were left in her apartment with no signs of ransacking, and they are focusing on acquaintances with a possible grudge.
- Four days before the killing, Komatsumoto anonymously asked Mito Police Station about a stalking hotline, and local reporting says investigators believe Ouchi had been following her since last fall.