Four dead, suspect arrested in rare shooting in Japan

TOKYO, May 26 (Reuters) – Japanese authorities said on Friday they had arrested a 31-year-old man in a rural area on suspicion of murder after four people were killed in a rare shooting and stabbing incident. involving a 12-hour stand-off with police.

The suspect hid in his house after shooting two policemen who arrived at the scene in response to a report that a woman had been stabbed, the head of the Nagano prefectural police said in a televised press conference. He used what appeared to be a hunting rifle in the shooting, he said.

The suspect is the son of the head of the Nakano city council, public broadcaster NHK reported.

The two police officers and the woman were taken to hospital and pronounced dead within hours, police chief Iwao Koyama said.

“This is a heinous crime that has caused great fear among the residents of the prefecture and society at large,” he said.

Another elderly woman also died after an apparent knife attack, police said. He has been lying on the ground outside the house since Thursday afternoon and police have not been able to find him, media reported.

Police detained the man around 4:30 am (1930 GMT) on Friday, about 12 hours after the first call to emergency responders, media said. He was arrested for allegedly killing one of the policemen, Koyama said.

Shootings are extremely rare in Japan, where gun ownership is strictly controlled and anyone wishing to own a gun must go through a strict vetting process. The suspect had a license for a hunting rifle, the head of the National Public Safety Commission said in a separate briefing.

The suspect’s mother and aunt, who were with him in the house, escaped on their own, Koyama said.

Few details have been revealed, including the suspect’s motive.

Reporting by Satoshi Sugiyama Editing by Chang-Ran Kim and Michael Perry

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