Suspicion of 3-year-old girl's death due to abuse was reported to the city multiple times while scheduling a response meeting

On the 13th, prefectural police arrested the father, Kentaro Kanao (33), on suspicion of murder, and the mother, Riyo (33), on suspicion of causing death by abandoning a guardian responsible for abusing her daughter at their home in Hirakata City, Osaka Prefecture.

Kentaro is suspected of killing his eldest daughter, Reina Ei (age 3 at the time), by punching her multiple times in the head, back, and stomach on August 2nd, causing her death the following day on August 3rd.

Riyo is suspected of causing the child's death by failing to stop the assault and failing to provide necessary protection, such as reporting to the police or child welfare center.

Erena reportedly had dozens of bruises all over her body.

On the night of the 13th, Hirakata City revealed that it had received multiple notices between July 2025 and July 2026 regarding suspicions of abuse against Reina Ei.

According to Hirakata City, it has received a total of five notices from three parties since July 18, 2025. Each time, he checked on Erena's situation, listened to her parents' circumstances, and provided advice and guidance.

As we received a notice on July 21st, following June of this year, we consulted with the Osaka Prefecture Central Child and Family Center (Child Guidance Center) on that day and discussed how to respond. They decided that they needed to continue to monitor the situation, and while providing guidance to the parents, they were also coordinating the schedule of a meeting with the child care counselor to consider what to do.

Meanwhile, on August 3, they received a call from the child welfare center and learned that Erena had died.

On the 13th, the children's office explained that when it was consulted by the city about Erena's case on July 21st, it was determined that the case was not serious enough to require urgent protection or immediate provision of information to the police. Regarding the basis for the decision, the company said, ``We will refrain from explaining it from the perspective of protecting privacy.''

Mayor Takashi Fushimi of Hirakata City said on the 13th, ``We take very seriously that this situation happened to a child whom the city was notified of and responded to,'' and added, ``We will cooperate with the police investigation, understand the circumstances of the death, reflect with the child welfare center on what kind of response the city should have taken, what the issues were, and obtain opinions from outside experts, and do our best to prevent it from happening again.''