A 23-year-old man who was arrested Monday night in connection with the murder of a 7-year-old girl in the city of Niigata has admitted he killed the girl, investigative sources said Tuesday.

Police believe Haruka Kobayashi strangled the victim to death and abandoned the body after transporting it by car.

He told police that his car hit her while he was driving, but the autopsy found no clues of a car crash, suggesting the suspect might have lied about the crash, the sources said.