A nursing home in Minami-Alps, Yamanashi Prefecture, where a female resident was found dead, is seen on Aug. 6, 2021. (Mainichi/Ayano Tanaka)

       KOFU -- A caregiver was indicted on Aug. 26 on charges of rape resulting in death of an 80-year-old woman at a nursing home he worked at in Minami-Alps, Yamanashi Prefecture, earlier this month.

       Kazuki Tanzawa, 42, had been arrested on suspicion of murdering the woman after she was confirmed dead at the facility.

       According to the indictment, Tanzawa stands accused of choking the woman with his arm before raping her in a bathroom at the home between around 9:50 p.m. and 11:30 p.m. on Aug. 5. The woman died from suffocation. Prosecutors have not revealed whether Tanzawa has admitted to the accusation.

       The Kofu District Public Prosecutors Office switched the charges against him to from murder to forcible sexual intercourse resulting in death, stating, "Based on our comprehensive examination of the evidence, it was difficult to prove he intended to kill her."

       According to Yamanashi Prefectural Police, Tanzawa was on night duty on his own on Aug. 5. After the woman died, he alerted the facility's director of her death, and the director called police. The woman's body was laid on a bed in her room, facing up. The victim reportedly had difficulty walking and could not live without assistance.

       During the initial phase of investigation, Tanzawa had admitted to strangling her but had given vague testimony about whether he had intended to take her life.

       The woman's family released a statement on Aug. 26, saying, "My mother was leading a pleasant life, but it was ruined at the last moment. We want the perpetrator to tell the truth during his trial."

       (Japanese original by Ayano Tanaka, Kofu Bureau)

       Font Size S M L Print Timeline 0