A man already jailed twice for violent crimes against children, including the attempted murder of a high school girl in 2015, was arrested Wednesday on suspicion of killing a 9-year-old girl in 2004 in central Japan.
Kunihiko Katsuta, 39, had admitted to strangling Yukiko Tsutsushio, a third-grade elementary school pupil in Tsuyama, Okayama Prefecture, but denied having intended to kill the girl and also denied stabbing her, police said.
Local police believe Katsuta choked and stabbed her to death at her home between 3:15 p.m. and 3:35 p.m. on Sept. 3, 2004. He is suspected of stabbing her multiple times with a knife, which is yet to be found.