NANTAN, Kyoto Prefecture—The father of an 11-year-old boy found dead in a wooded area here has admitted to killing his son and dumping the body, Kyoto prefectural police said.
Yuuki Adachi, 37, an employee of a manufacturing company, was arrested early on April 16 on suspicion of abandoning the body of Yuki Adachi.
“There is no doubt that I did it,” the suspect was quoted as telling investigators.
He has also made a statement admitting to killing his son, according to investigative sources.
Police referred the case to prosecutors later in the day.
They believe the suspect moved the body several times to various locations within Nantan. Yuki’s body was eventually found in a wooded area between his home and his elementary school on the evening of April 13.
Investigators are working to determine why the body was relocated and what exactly happened to boy, who was reported missing on March 23.
A judicial autopsy could not determine the cause of death but estimated the boy died in late March.
Investigative sources said the boy was last seen alive on the morning of March 23.
Police said they currently have no evidence that an accomplice was involved in the crime.
They also confirmed there were no prior reports of abuse concerning the family filed with police or child guidance centers.
Shortly after noon on April 16, more than 100 media members gathered around the Nantan Police Station.
While officers blocked the view with sheets and umbrellas, a van with tinted windows carrying the suspect departed for the Kyoto District Public Prosecutors Office.
PUZZLING CLUE
The arrest came after a three-week search for the boy.
Adachi claimed he drove his son to Sonobe Elementary School on the morning of March 23 and dropped him off at an on-site after-school care facility.
However, a check of security cameras at the school revealed no images of the boy arriving there. He had no cellphone or GPS device, and a wider check of security camera footage showed no evidence he traveled by train or bus.
As a large-scale search continued throughout the city, police received a report on March 29 that the boy’s school bag had been found in the mountains about 3 kilometers west of the school.
The location was described as a narrow, one-lane mountain pass with no streetlights and surrounded by tall trees. It was not in the direction of the Adachi home or the nearest train station.
According to investigative sources, police at the time considered the possibility that a third party had deliberately placed the bag there.
SEARCH NARROWS
While publicly stating they were searching the “entire city,” police were simultaneously scrutinizing the father’s actions around the time his son vanished, the sources said.
They discreetly began searching mountainous areas and thickets near the Adachi family home and along the route to the school. These are locations the father was believed to have visited, the sources said.
On April 12, children’s shoes resembling the sneakers the boy was reportedly wearing when he disappeared were found in the mountains between the home and the school.
The following day, officers expanded their search to an area closer to the school.
In a wooded area about 2 km southwest of the elementary school, they discovered the body.
The body was found without shoes, supporting the theory that he died elsewhere and his body was transported.
THE SEARCH FOR WHY
Prefectural police on April 16 established a 37-member investigation headquarters at the Nantan Police Station to determine the full circumstances of the case.
Also on April 16, the father was placed on a leave of absence from the electrical equipment manufacturer where he worked, according to a company representative.
The representative declined to comment on the suspect’s work performance but said the company would “cooperate with the investigating authorities toward a full resolution of the case.”
AloJapan.com