A 72 year-old retired soldier blew himself up in a park
in the Japanese city of Utsunomiya, killing himself and injuring
three other people in an apparent suicide.
Axar.az reports referring to state broadcaster NHK reported.
A second explosion, separate from the blast that killed the
former Self Defence Force member, caused a fire in a nearby parking
lot, while the man’s home 8 km (5 miles) from the park burnt to the
ground, the report said.
The police in the city, which is about 100 km (62 miles) north
of Tokyo, said they had discovered a suicide note written by the
man and were investigating the three incidents, but did not give
further details.
Images broadcast by NHK showed two burnt out cars, one of which
belonged to the dead man, about 200 meters (650 feet) from the park
and a charred broken bench at the edge of the park, where a folk
art festival was underway.
The explosion in the park injured two men aged 64 and 58, who
were being treated for shrapnel wounds. The third victim was a 14
year-old school boy, NHK said. Witnesses told the broadcaster they
heard a series of loud explosions.
Suicide rates have declined in Japan in recent years, but remain
among the highest in the world, with around 30,000 people a year
taking their own lives. Experts have pointed to the financial
stress of surviving on small pensions for pushing some retired
people to end their lives.
In 2015, a 71 year-old man set himself on fire on a bullet train
in an incident that also claimed the life of a 52 year-old woman
traveling in the same carriage.