Gardener arrested for strangling housewife in Ibaraki

Tuesday 28th October, 10:24 AM JST

IBARAKI —

Police on Monday arrested a 35-year-old man, who works as a gardener, for strangling a 49-year-old woman at her home on Oct 16 in Mito City, Ibaraki Prefecture.

Tetsuya Ohira, an itinerant gardener who lives in his car, was arrested for allegedly strangling Noriko Sato. The victim was found around 8:30 p.m. on Oct 17. by her husband who was living in Tsukuba City for a work assignment. Police said Ohira had been hired by Sato to do some gardening work.

Police said Ohira admits the allegations but has given no motive.

Latest 15 of 21 Total Comments Show All

seesaw at 01:39 PM JST - 28th October

a case of desperate housewife having an affair with a milk-man..or in this case a gardener....hmmm..that could be possible?...:) I'm not Japanese ..so don't know if my guess would be true..any Japanese readers willing to voice out some opinions?....thanks!

Moderator: Readers, please do not make these sort of lurid speculations.
Nessie at 01:57 PM JST - 28th October

Or it could be a set-up by the husband.
CavemanLawyer at 03:44 PM JST - 28th October

The motive could have been so many things, even just a fit of murderous insanity. There is not anything here to even begin to field a guess except money being as he was homeless and did work for the woman. But those could not be any slimmer.

Of course, no respectable woman would hire a man who lives in his car

Say what? Where the heck did that come from? Putting the homeless to work is a noble deed. Risky while the hubby is away, but that does not make it unworthy of a respectable woman. I can't even call your contention old fashioned. So what the heck is it then? --Cirroc
seesaw at 04:05 PM JST - 28th October

I was told not to make 'Lurid Speculations...wot?...aren't we all supposed to be here to discuss and make suggestions....?.

Moderator: There is a difference between discussion and making inappropriate remarks. This is a tragic story. A woman was strangled. Readers should bear that in mind.
fatloser at 04:28 PM JST - 28th October

CORRECTION-allegedly strangled!!
CavemanLawyer at 04:44 PM JST - 28th October

Basically, I side with seesaw. But also, I warn seesaw that jumping for the sexual motive with no proof at all exposes something about seesaw. So at least keep it civil if you have not been all along.

Yes, a woman is dead. But when the motive is revealed, the woman's appearance of innocence might be swept away. She might have really done something really nasty to the gardener. Then again, she may be the poor innocent woman we all want to believe she was, and the gardener the foul villian. But in any case, killing never warranted.
CavemanLawyer at 04:46 PM JST - 28th October

CORRECTION-allegedly strangled!!

If you wish, but he has admitted to the charge. Who are we to doubt his word? :)--Cirroc
fatloser at 05:15 PM JST - 28th October

He may have been forced into confessing. You'll notice he has given no motive. He might not have had the energy to give one. Those interrogations are very harsh. What kind of lawyer would believe anything from police!! Granted he has confessed, but this IS Japan and it should be taken into consideration.
BBLeo at 05:18 PM JST - 28th October

Well, she hired him and he fired her. She gave him the job, to look after her flowers. Was he paid to do his job or is there something else behind the scene. Time will tell.
seesaw at 05:22 PM JST - 28th October

Thank you CavemanLawyer! No one here has proofs of what to say. We are all guessing.
seesaw at 05:40 PM JST - 28th October

Yes..BBLeo..time will tell.....
Lieutenant at 08:36 PM JST - 28th October

Bizarre case.

糸口が見つかったのは２５日。パトロール中の警察官が、昨年６月に茨城町のガソリンスタンドで発生した給油詐欺事件の容疑者として、水戸市内のパチンコ店の駐車場にいた男を逮捕。この男、大平容疑者の名前が、佐藤さん宅への出入り業者として捜査対象者のリストにあったことから、指紋を採取、殺害現場に残されていた指紋と一致した。

Donuts on patrol arrested a man on Saturday for a non-payment of gasoline and drive-off which happened in June last year. This man was Ohira, who was on the cop's list of people known to have entered Noriko's premises. So they took his prints, and they matched those found at the crime scene. Fragments of his clothes were also found (sic).

Ohira did work for Noriko last year, and is reported to have known that she lived by herself during the week.

Apparently he had only several thousand yen on his person at the time of his arrest. Maybe he did it to get shelter and a bed.
kjunluc2 at 01:17 AM JST - 29th October

Nessie, great skeptics think alike.
elbudamexicano at 01:45 PM JST - 29th October

Sorry, but I agree totally with the moderator. I think it is highly disrespectful to make lurid speculations. He (the garderner) living in car? He is a J-looser and he just did not have the guts to commit suicide so he is taking the easy way out by killing this innocent house wife. Hatoyama san please, please hurry and put this idiot gardner out of his misery!
Nessie at 03:45 PM JST - 29th October

Kjun, yeah. It'll be interesting to see how this turns out.