Yevgeniy Vasilievich Bayraktar, of New York, held after woman went missing having answered invite on a dating app

This article is more than 2 years old

This article is more than 2 years old

Police have found dismembered body parts believed to belong to a Japanese woman who disappeared after meeting up with an American tourist via a dating application.



The gruesome discovery of a torso, arms and legs occurred a day after police found a human head in a suitcase at a lodging facility in Osaka, a major port city about 400km (250 miles) south-west of Tokyo.

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The suspect has been named in Japanese media as Yevgeniy Vasilievich Bayraktar, 26, of New York. He was arrested last week on suspicion of illegally confining the woman to another short-term rental property in Osaka’s Higashinari ward.

The woman, 27, went missing after telling a friend on 15 February that she was travelling from the inland city of Sanda to meet a male acquaintance, local media reported.

The pair had been in contact through a dating app that matches Japanese people with foreigners, according to Kyodo News, which cited anonymous investigative sources.

Those same sources said the two were seen on security camera footage entering the condominium early on 16 February, but later vision appeared to show the man repeatedly going in and out of the property carrying a large bag. Traces of blood were found at the property, where a large amount of air freshener had also been used, Kyodo reported.

The investigation moved forward on Saturday when a head was found in a suitcase at a lodging facility in Osaka’s Nishinari ward.

Then, late on Sunday, police discovered an unclothed torso in a mountainous part of the wider Osaka prefecture. This was followed by the discovery of arms 600 metres (1970 feet) from the torso, placed side by side and covered with a small layer of soil, the Asahi newspaper reported. Finally, two legs were found in a wooded area in Kyoto.

The cause of death is not yet clear. Police have reportedly described the body parts as having no apparent injuries apart from where they were severed.

Local media said the discoveries were based on information supplied by the suspect.

Bayraktar is believed to have used dating apps to communicate with a number of women since his arrival in Japan in January. He is thought to have taken several other women into the same Higashinari apartment, although police have confirmed they are safe, according to the Mainichi newspaper.

In a separate case on Japan’s northern island of Hokkaido, three men have been arrested over suspicions they abandoned the body of a woman missing since December. A severed head was reportedly discovered in Hokkaido late last week.