Neighbors said they knew little about the man who went on a rampage stabbing children and adults Tuesday morning at a school bus stop in Kawasaki near Tokyo.
Ryuichi Iwasaki, 51, had very few dealings with his neighbors although one thought he was short-tempered.
The rampage occurred at around 7:40 a.m. on a street near Noborito Station on East Japan Railway Co.'s Nambu Line and Odakyu Electric Railway Co.'s Odakyu Odawara Line.
Forty minutes before the incident which caused two deaths and multiple injuries, and ended in his suicide, Iwasaki said good morning to a female neighbor, an unusual occurrence according to her. He then went in the direction of a nearby station.
The two had a troubling interaction, according to her, when Iwasaki rang the doorbell early in the morning last summer to complain that a branch from her garden had grown over the sidewalk hitting him in the eye.
(Police search the suspect's home)
Iwasaki is said to have gone to local elementary and junior high schools but few people knew much about him, with one man saying his mother recently mentioned she had seen him for the first time in a long time.
"I can't believe he would cause such a horrible incident," said another female neighbor, who added she had seen him walk a few days ago looking down and carrying some shopping bags.
A newspaper delivery person thought that the only people living at Iwasaki's home were an elderly couple but recalled that he saw a large amount of youth magazines on a paper recycle day three or four months ago.
Related coverage:
2 dead as man stabs 16 schoolgirls, 2 adults in rampage near Tokyo
Man heard shouting "I'm gonna kill you" in Kawasaki stabbing rampage
Good-natured schoolgirl, Burmese specialist killed in mass stabbing in Japan
