and mother Julia look on during a news conference Friday at the British Embassy in Tokyo. SATOKO KAWASAKI PHOTO

Julia Hawker, the mother of 22-year-old Lindsay, who was found suffocated and buried naked in a sand-filled bathtub at Ichihashi's Chiba apartment in March, revealed that the suspected killer's family "sent through a statement sending their condolences, saying that they hoped their son (atones) for his crime."

Our Planet

Hidetaka Ishii, an official at the Chiba Municipal Government, says close coordination with private-sector operators is key for regional decarbonization efforts.
Japan’s climate heroes show potential and limits of local initiatives

Longform

A sinkhole in Yashio, which emerged in January, was triggered by a ruptured, aging sewer pipe. Authorities worry that similar sections of infrastructure across the country are also at risk of corrosion.
That sinking feeling: Japan’s aging sewers are an infrastructure time bomb