Shiga: Officer found shot in police box later dies; colleague, 19, arrested

SHIGA (TR) – Shiga Prefectural Police have arrested a teenage officer after a colleague found shot at a police box in Hikone City on Wednesday night later died, reports NHK (Apr. 12).

At around 8:45 p.m., Akira Imoto, a 41-year-old sergeant, was found collapsed with wounds to his head and back at a police box fronting JR Kawase Station. After being transported to a hospital, he was confirmed dead.

Early the next morning, police apprehended the other officer, 19, who was on duty with Imoto in the police box on Wednesday, in the neighboring town of Aisho. The officer had gone missing after the sergeant was found collapsed. At around 5:30 a.m., police arrested him on suspicion of murder.

“I shot him because I was abused,” the suspect reportedly told police prior to his arrest.

When Imoto was found, his body was collapsed over a desk as he sat in a chair in the police box, leading officers to suspect that he was shot from behind.

The 19-year-old officer joined the force in April of last year. This past January, he was assigned to the Hikone Police Station.

It is believed that the suspect fled the scene following the shooting in a police vehicle, which was later discovered in a field in Aisho about 4 kilometers away from the police box. At around 7:00 a.m. on Thursday, police found the gun that is believed to have been the one used in the crime near the same field.