Japan Earthquake Evacuee Dies After Son Kicked, Punched Him; Son Arrested on Suspicion of Assaulting Noto Quake Victim Father

The Yomiuri Shimbun

21:00 JST, December 8, 2024

The Chiba prefectural police on Sunday arrested a 45-year-old man from Kimitsu, Chiba Prefecture, for allegedly assaulting his 78-year-old father by kicking him in the chest and other places. The father, who was reportedly staying at his son’s home after being hit by the Noto Peninsula Earthquake, died on Saturday, and the police are investigating the case with the possibility of charging the son for inflicting an “injury causing death.”

According to the police, the man kicked and punched the right side of his father’s chest on Thursday evening, causing him to sustain broken ribs and other injuries. The father was found collapsed on a street near his son’s home and was taken to a hospital but died there on Saturday.

The police said the man admitted to the allegations and told them that his father lived in Wajima, Ishikawa Prefecture, but had evacuated to his home after the city was hit by an earthquake on New Year’s Day.