72-year-old may have blown himself up in Utsunomiya park, media reports suggest

This article is more than 2 years old

This article is more than 2 years old

Two apparent explosions have hit the Japanese city of Utsunomiya, killing one person and injuring three others in what police are viewing as a possible suicide. Japanese media reports suggest that the victim, believed to be a 72-year-old former military officer, may have set his house on fire, blown up his car in a public parking lot and then blown himself up in a nearby park. The Japanese broadcaster NHK says police found a suicide note at the scene, and one of the damaged vehicles was owned by a 72-year-old man, believed to be a former member of the Self-Defence Forces. One of the cars destroyed in a fiery blaze in the parking lot belonged to the retired military man, and his house burned to the ground earlier on Sunday, the reports said. The blast in the nearby park seriously injured two men, and a 14-year-old boy suffered minor leg injuries. Cars were found burning in a parking lot at around 11:30 a.m., according to police, but the cause of the blazes was not immediately known. Kyodo News agency said a burned body was found in the park after police received a call saying a person was engulfed in flames following what sounded like an explosion. Photos posted to social media showed columns of black smoke and the charred remains of two vehicles parked next to each other. Two cars in a nearby parking area also caught fire at the same time, police said. The explosions occurred at a park in Utsunomiya, some 100 kilometres north of Tokyo, shortly after 11:30 am (0230 GMT), a fire department spokesman said.
Two explosions in a park in the Japanese city of Utsunomiya, Tochigi Prefecture, kill at least one person and injure three others. Local media report that a 72-year-old ex-military officer is responsible for the blasts. A fire the same day destroyed the suspect's house.