Parents arrested for 3-year-old daughter's death due to abuse, dozens of bruises all over her body - Osaka Prefectural Police suspects she was assaulted on a daily basis

On the 13th, Osaka Prefectural Police arrested Kentaro Kanao (33), a father and office worker from Okayamate-cho, Hirakata City, in the same prefecture, on suspicion of abusing and killing his 3-year-old daughter. The suspect, Riyo (33), of Higashiyama, Nisshin City, Aichi Prefecture, whose mother is unemployed, was also arrested on suspicion of neglecting to take appropriate measures such as reporting the incident, and was also charged with abandoning the person in charge of guardianship resulting in death. Neither approval nor denial has been made clear.

According to the Prefectural Police's First Investigative Division, the daughter had dozens of bruises all over her body, and the division is investigating the matter, suspecting that she was assaulted on a daily basis.

Kentaro was arrested on suspicion of assaulting his daughter Erena, hitting her multiple times on the head, back, and abdomen, at her home in Hirakata City, where she lived at the time, on the night of August 2nd, leading to her death in the early hours of the following day, the 3rd. Riyo is suspected of causing Kentaro's death by failing to stop him from assaulting him and failing to report the incident to the police or child consultation center.

At the time of the incident, Kentaro was making Erena go up and down the stairs using a step stool, in the name of walking training. It is said that he became angry when Erena interrupted and apparently assaulted him.

On the morning of the 3rd, Kentaro, the suspect, noticed that Erena was not breathing and called 911. An autopsy revealed that he suffered from acute subdural hematoma, brain contusion, and his esophagus had ruptured. Both suspects initially gave an explanation to the effect that they had fallen on their own, but based on the condition of the injuries and other factors, suspicions that the death was due to abuse were strengthened, and the division was investigating.

According to Hirakata City, since July last year, the city has received notices from related organizations five times and has met with Erena. They also checked for bruises and other injuries, and provided advice and guidance to both suspects. In response to a series of notices, in July of this year, the agency consulted with the Osaka Prefecture Central Child and Family Center (Child Counselor), which has jurisdiction over the agency, to discuss how to respond.

Mayor Takashi Fushimi of Hirakata commented, ``We take this very seriously that a child, for whom the city was notified and responded, ended up in a situation like this.We will do our best to prevent it from happening again.''