Crime & Courts

Stabbed Students in Kitakyushu Have No Defensive Wounds; Lack of Hand Wounds Demonstrates Attack’s Speed (Update1)

The Yomiuri Shimbun

12:30 JST, December 16, 2024 (updated at 18:10 JST, Dec. 16)

KITAKYUSHU — The two junior high school students who were stabbed by a man at a fast-food restaurant on Saturday have no defensive wounds, indicating that they were assaulted without any time to protect themselves, according to investigative sources.

The Fukuoka prefectural police said the incident took place at a McDonald’s in Kokura Minami Ward, Kitakyushu. After entering the fast-food chain, the man approached and then silently stabbed the two students, who were standing at the end of the line to the cash register.

Saaya Nakashima, a third-year student from the city’s junior high school, was stabbed once in her abdomen, while the other victim, a third-year male student from the school, was stabbed once in his side. The suspect fled the scene with what appeared to be a knife. Nakashima was later confirmed dead.

The two students had no wounds to their hands, which are typically suffered when a victim tries to defend themselves, according to investigative sources. The wounds on their bodies suggest that the suspect stabbed rather than slashed them.

Less than 30 seconds elapsed between the man entering and leaving the restaurant.

None of the workers or customers at the restaurant witnessed the attack.

Nakashima, 15, died of blood loss. The boy, 15, suffered a non-fatal injury that was deep enough to cause death if suffered in a different location. The boy has been hospitalized.

The police are investigating the case as both a murder and attempted murder.