In what appears to be yet another tragic case of fatal child abuse, a 4-year-old girl in Izumi, Kagoshima Prefecture died in late August, and a 21-year-old man has been arrested for suspected violence against the victim. While the girl was found to have drowned — in the bath at her home, according to the suspect, who is the boyfriend of the victim's mother — there were multiple bruises all over her body.
Just like in recent high-profile cases of fatal abuse of children, authorities including the city government, local child welfare center and the police had been alerted to signs that the girl was being abused, but failed to take action, such as taking her into protective custody, in time to save her life. Why they failed to do so — even though it has been emphasized over and over again that priority must be given to safety of victims of suspected abuse — needs to be closely examined.
The first signs of abuse emerged in March, when the girl and the mother were living in the city of Satsumasendai in the same prefecture. Police received an anonymous call that a video showing the girl possibly being abused had been posted online. When officials of the police and a child welfare center visited their home to meet with the mother and the girl, they could not find bruises or other signs of injuries on the girl. But the child welfare center later noted that there were fears of abuse.