Man Rearrested on Suspicion of Murdering Girl at Kitakyushu McDonald’s in December

The Yomiuri Shimbun

16:01 JST, January 9, 2025

Fukuoka prefectural police rearrested Masanori Hirabaru, 43, on suspicion of murdering a female student. The arrest pertains to an incident where one male and one female junior high school student were injured and killed, respectively, by a man at a McDonald’s fast food restaurant in Kitakyushu in December, the police said.

Hirabaru, also residing in Kitakyushu, is suspected of killing the female student, 15, in the same ward by stabbing her in the abdomen with a knife at the McDonald’s outlet at around 8:25 pm on Dec. 14. On Dec. 19, police had arrested Hirabaru, who is unemployed, on suspicion of the attempted murder of the male student, 15.