TOKYO (TR) – Tokyo Metropolitan Police have arrested a 50-year-old man after an acquaintance was fatally stabbed during a violent street brawl in Fussa City early on Sunday, reports TBS News (Oct. 18).
Takashi Kudo, a resident of Fussa, is accused of plunging a weapon into the left chest of 46-year-old Masakatsu Watanabe at around 2:30 a.m. on a local street. Watanabe died as a result of the injuries.
During police questioning on suspicion of murder, Kudo partially denied the murder charge, claiming the death was not premeditated.
“There is no mistake that I killed him, but I did not have the intent to kill,” Kudo told investigators.
According to an eyewitness who called emergency services, the deadly stabbing was preceded by a heated dispute between the two men.
“I thought they were just arguing, but then suddenly he violently shoved him down, got on top of him, and started punching him,” the witness said, adding that the assailant fled the scene immediately after the stabbing.
Following the emergency call, police launched a homicide investigation to track down the fleeing suspect. Authorities later received a phone call suggesting Kudo intended to turn himself in. However, investigators tracked him down and apprehended him in neighboring Akishima City that afternoon.
Police are continuing to investigate the exact circumstances and the cause of the trouble that led to the fatal altercation.