Man arrested for leaving mother's dead body in her home for 10 years

A man was arrested for keeping his mother's corpse in her apartment for 10 years.

The South China Morning Post reported that Takehisa Miyawaki, 60, told the police that he didn't inform them about his 90-year-old mother's death a decade ago due to social phobia.

He also didn't call any hospital, and opted to leave his mother's body as it was.

“About 10 years ago, my mother was found not breathing in the toilet. Her body had turned cold. She did not respond to any prompting,” Miyawaki is quoted as saying. “As an ordinary person, I knew that my mother had passed away."

Miyawaki, who doesn't have work and a fixed home address, was charged with abandonment of a corpse.

Article 190A of Japan's Penal Code states that a "person who damages, abandons, or unlawfully possesses a corpse, the ashes or hair of a dead person, or an object placed in a coffin" can be imprisoned up to three years.

Miyawaki aroused suspicion when a public servant in Kobe City saw him walking with a limp on May 22. When asked for his personal information, including his mother's details, Miyawaki refused to say anything about her.

The official contacted the police, who then checked the registered home address of Miyawaki's mother. They saw heaps of trash in the apartment before discovering a skeleton in the toilet.

Early this month, a DNA test confirmed the body was that of Miyawaki's mother. No evidence suggested that she was murdered.

The police are still investigating the case.