Two suspects in custody for allegedly dumping the body of a Nagoya woman in Shiga Prefecture have been served fresh arrest warrants for robbery and murder, police said.
Officers not made clear whether Ichiya Nishida, 21, and an 18-year-old male have admitted to the charges. The two suspects allegedly hinted during their initial arrest that they were involved in murdering Miyuki Noda, a 53-year-old part-time worker.
The name of the 18-year-old suspect has been withheld because he is a minor.
The police allege that the two suspects conspired to strangle Noda on the evening of June 18 in a mountain forest at a location close to the town of Taga where her body was found, and robbed her of her belongings, including money, a bag and a smartphone.
Her empty wallet, a bag and other belongings were found at Nishida's house, investigative sources alleged.
Nishida is believed to have become acquainted with Noda through a seminar about the bitcoin virtual currency around last spring.
Noda disappeared June 18 after attending a seminar about sales of cosmetics and other matters in Kasugai, Aichi Prefecture.
After Noda went missing, Nishida allegedly transferred her bitcoin holdings to his account and converted them into about ¥300,000 in cash.
Her body is believed to have been discarded around June 20. It was found July 31.
The two suspects, both from Shiga, were arrested Aug. 1 on suspicion of abandoning Noda's corpse.
