Sunday May 27, 2012

JAPAN NEWS AND DISCUSSION

'Family' of skeletons found in Sendai house

National Nov. 04, 2011 - 03:10PM JST ( 39 )

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39 Comments

-2

BurakuminDesNov. 04, 2011 - 03:33PM JST

It said police suspected family suicide

Here we go again with the "family suicide". Pretty soon every murder victim or suspicious death will be labelled a "forced" or "family" suicide by J-Cops. I guess it makes their investigations that much easier.
0

Star-vikingNov. 04, 2011 - 03:37PM JST

Very sad.
0

アメリフセインNov. 04, 2011 - 03:42PM JST

Sad the daughter had to go away :(
3

cleoNov. 04, 2011 - 03:53PM JST

court officials visited the premises as part of a dispute the occupants had with the landlord over rent

If the occupants had been dead for at least 6 months, how could they have any kind of dispute with anyone over anything? Had no one else missed them - relatives, employers, co-workers - until the bank stopped paying the rent (presumably because the money ran out)?

For three people to kill themselves (if that's what happened) is sad. For three people to disappear and no one notice or care about their disappearance is really sad.
4

browny1Nov. 04, 2011 - 03:54PM JST

Just saw this on the tv and the strangest thing was that no one (neighbours, friends etc) appears to have noticed.

I mean there was still washing on the line - 6 months ~ year - WTF !!!

And the rent in arrears dispute???
-4

TatankaNov. 04, 2011 - 04:28PM JST

What the report ddn't say was that they were discovered when the NHK fee collector broke down the door...
1

tokyokawasakiNov. 04, 2011 - 04:29PM JST

Proof that compassion for others in your area (neighborhood spirit) still does not exist n Japan. How can a family of 3 not be missed by their neighbors, friends, relatives is beyond me.

I always say hello to people in my area, and I do not care if they say nothing in return. They have the right to be miserable, just like I have the right to be friendly...
0

CrickyNov. 04, 2011 - 04:33PM JST

No one noticed? That is almost as sad as 3 people so beyond hope that death is an option.
1

WilliBNov. 04, 2011 - 04:42PM JST

Agreed. None of the 3 was seen for a year, and none of the neighbours went to check on them? That is creepy.
0

GWNov. 04, 2011 - 04:42PM JST

Like I haver said for ages on jt, Japan is a damned cold country, here is just an example of many many cases
-2

gogogoNov. 04, 2011 - 04:46PM JST

wow... family deaths suck
5

CounterPunchNov. 04, 2011 - 04:48PM JST

One would think a 19 year old girl would have friends in the area from her high school days. You would also think that neighbors would notice the car not moving if they have one, the lights never being on, or being all day, etc. etc. Talk about people with their heads up their butts.
-1

tokyokawasakiNov. 04, 2011 - 04:49PM JST

I think I will call the Japanese suicide helpline. I am convinced they are encouraging people to just get on with it....
0

just-a-guyNov. 04, 2011 - 05:18PM JST

So nobody has looking for that family in the past 6-12months and their neighbours dont feel strange the family disappeared without a trace? Wow, the people in japan so COLD!
4

Nicky WashidaNov. 04, 2011 - 05:22PM JST

Skeletal but still able to dispute their rent??!
1

Piltdown ManNov. 04, 2011 - 05:32PM JST

court officials visited the premises as part of a dispute the occupants had with the landlord over rent

It must have been quite a heated dispute the landlord had with these people who had been dead for six months to a year.

If this weren't such a tragic story, the unanswered questions left hanging in this piece would be laughable.
-3

fabricijNov. 04, 2011 - 06:04PM JST

What is it with the contributors to this BLOG.... OMG ... A Family dies and you make jokes.... shame on you all...... GET YOUR ACT TOGETHER...
2

NuckinFutzNov. 04, 2011 - 06:13PM JST

I don't think it's a case of nobody noticing, I think nobody gives a $hit about their neighbors around here! Cold and heartless!
3

Phil ThompsonNov. 04, 2011 - 06:15PM JST

Family suicide my ass... I wager two people were murdered, and the perpetrator killed him/herself.
2

Nicky WashidaNov. 04, 2011 - 06:41PM JST

I think I will call the Japanese suicide helpline

is there even a suicide helpline here?

What is it with the contributors to this BLOG.... OMG ... A Family dies and you make jokes.... shame on you all...... GET YOUR ACT TOGETHER...

Who is making jokes? I dont see anyone joking about it. But even if they were, i think people are just so jaded from hearing this news time and again.
-2

smithinjapanNov. 04, 2011 - 06:47PM JST

cleo: Maybe it's a duplex separated into top and bottom units or something. If the occupants of the other room/house were complaining with landowners they may have been knocking to see if they had similar complaints or had hear/seen anything to verify any claims.

That's all I can think of, unless the complaints were made ages ago and they were just now getting on them.
2

smithinjapanNov. 04, 2011 - 06:49PM JST

That or it wasn't so much a 'dispute' as it was a problem -- that problem being it wasn't getting paid.
3

DentShopNov. 04, 2011 - 08:48PM JST

I dont care how many thumbs down I get - but there is seriously something wrong here, not only in a little house in Sendai, but across the whole country.

Was there no concern from other family members? Employers? Teachers? Friends?

I think people DO know something is awry but they are too scared to say anything. It is better just to walk by and not risk people getting the wrong idea. Thats why people are too scared to to stand up for the elderly on trains, why no body helps a person who falls of their bicycle and nobody cares that a woman screams and cries in the house next to them every night.
2

FadamorNov. 04, 2011 - 09:23PM JST

The smell of three decaying bodies should have prompted SOMEONE nearby to notify the police that something was wrong. I can't believe these people lived so far away from anyone else that the smell wasn't noticable.
0

Christina O'NeillNov. 04, 2011 - 09:40PM JST

It is difficult to discern which of the two aspects of this story is the most disturbing, that three people perhaps commited suicide over disputed rental payments or that it was so long since their demise, that their bodies were discovered. When they were found, it was not by a friend, family member or neighbour, but, by court officials.
0

Aakmal999Nov. 04, 2011 - 09:52PM JST

what next? will turn become ghost house,ghost film or place recording paranormal activities.. all source of money
0

Ash EdwardsNov. 04, 2011 - 11:08PM JST

In Florida a German man, his mother and dog were found mummified by their former gardner looking for work in a plush home after 2 years undisturbed. Seems the air conditioning dried and preserved the bodies and there was enough money in the bank to keep the utility bills paid.
1

Juan Carlos Barbosa PadillaNov. 04, 2011 - 11:24PM JST

As long as the people had been paying the rent and the death men odors are not so notorious.. no one can be able to notice a death like this.. :(
1

YuriOtaniNov. 05, 2011 - 12:11AM JST

Maybe someone murdered them for some reason. Suicide is an easy solution for lazy police.
0

gelendestrasseNov. 05, 2011 - 01:24AM JST

I have to agree with Christina, this story is disturbing on many levels. Lost job causes rent crisis, the "solution" is murder/suicide or whatever and then nobody notices that a whole family of three people has dropped out of sight for over six months? This is just tragic. You really have to wonder.
2

Shumatsu_SamuraiNov. 05, 2011 - 04:28AM JST

Proof that compassion for others in your area (neighborhood spirit) still does not exist n Japan. How can a family of 3 not be missed by their neighbors

Rubbish.

I have no idea what's going on with the house next to mine. I was aware of some people living there when I moved in a few months ago, but now there doesn't seem to be anyone there. For all I know there could be a dead family there too. It's not because I'm a bad neighbour, it's because I didn't get a chance to know the family there before they "disappeared".

You don't know the area these people lived in. There could have been a vacant property on one side (or both sides) and a new resident on the other.
0

Shumatsu_SamuraiNov. 05, 2011 - 04:30AM JST

that three people perhaps commited suicide over disputed rental payments...

Somehow I doubt that was the issue. They were dead for over 6 months before the landlord tried to get the property back. I doubt that an aggressive or nasty landlord would have waited up to a year before trying to repossess his property!
-1

Suzanne XuNov. 05, 2011 - 06:08AM JST

Perhaps this "family suicide" is true because as everyone else says, "no one noticed." Why? Who knows but my thoughts on this just hints at the fact that neighbors, friends, family, etc, didn't care about them (which to me seems extremely rare/weird since there should at least be one person who makes contact with them) so the three family members got fed up with their social status or whatever other issues unknown and decided to commit suicide.
0

NinjaDaveNov. 05, 2011 - 06:47AM JST

Can it be murder, can it be justified? Maybe we will never know. Many in family or business drive others to kill and we have to speculate, as we do in this tragic case.

Forensic science in Japan is poor outside of major cities, great for those with a grudge or mental disorders.
1

gifuNov. 05, 2011 - 08:17AM JST

Nicky Washida asked if there's a suicide hotline in Japan. Yes, a guy I know coordinates a Catholic-run 24 hour line. They get very dedicated volunteers who train once a week for a year before handling a case on their own. The trouble is, most of these volunteers are women and they eventually leave because most of the callers are male telephone-perverts rather than potential suicides. The volunteers get sick of continuous hot-breathing and sexual one-liners and stop going to volunteer.
0

JannettoNov. 05, 2011 - 12:41PM JST

So they died between 6 and 12 months ago in the Sendai area- let's say right before the quake/tsunami - and in March their relatives or "friends" call to check up on them cos they haven't seen them for a couple of weeks... oh, no answer, guess they were in the wrong place at the wrong time, they all think.

So far I can see this happen- but then wouldn't you go knock on the door? Didn't they own "stuff" - I'd hope if my whole family was assumed dead, SOMEONE would want to get in my place & go through documents & even clothes etc. Landlord wouldn't care if the bank was paying the rent - till it ran out, hence the "dispute". Just bizarre that nobody noticed - not just one missing person but three. Unless it WAS a suicide and they'd previously told people they were leaving town. - but even then wouldn't you be keeping in touch with people? Very odd.
0

Kamala Brown-SparksNov. 05, 2011 - 02:11PM JST

My dad was a mean ass when he died 44 days ago, I hadn't spoken to him since December,but I was still notified of his death immediately because my friend is a firefighter/ EMT......I can't imagine 3 people dying and no one noticing....that is so sad.
0

Nicky WashidaNov. 05, 2011 - 03:34PM JST

@Gifu

They get very dedicated volunteers who train once a week for a year before handling a case on their own. The trouble is, most of these volunteers are women and they eventually leave because most of the callers are male telephone-perverts rather than potential suicides. The volunteers get sick of continuous hot-breathing and sexual one-liners and stop going to volunteer.

Interesting, thanks for the info. I used to work for Samaritans actually, in the UK, for just over 2 years. We had exactly the same problem - roughly 80% of the calls on average were sex-callers. Some branches had a dedicated line set up for it called a "Brenda line" with specially trained volunteers to handle the calls. We also had people dropping into the centre and masturbating in front of us - again we were trained to deal with it and in most cases managed to "catch" the problem before it became a bigger one, if you follow me.

We also had some regular callers who appeared to be genuine (not necessarily suicide but traumatic stories to tell) and we were trained to tell the genuine ones from the "fantasy" callers who were actually getting off on telling the story to someone and going into the fantasy.

It was a tough job, and most volunteers last no more than 2-3 years before it gets a bit much, although some have been there for much longer.

When you do get a genuine call and manage to help, it is very very rewarding work.
-1

TahoochiNov. 05, 2011 - 05:00PM JST

Proof that compassion for others in your area (neighborhood spirit) still does not exist n Japan.

...there is seriously something wrong here, not only in a little house in Sendai, but across the whole country.

@tokyokawasaki and Dent Shop: I live in a very tight-knit community where everybody knows eachother. To me, that's proof that compassion for others DOES exist in Japan. With stories like this in the news, I don't think it's fair to assume things like this are the norm in Japan. Abnormal and shocking stories make the news. Normal and everyday stuff (including neigbors being friendly to eachother) does not make the news. That should be obvious.

But in this particular case, I agree with other posts; it's sad when nobody notices your gone for 6 months.