Police on Tuesday sent a man suspected of stabbing a police officer and stealing his gun in Osaka Prefecture to prosecutors, one day after his arrest.
The police said Yujiro Iimori, 33, who is charged with attempted murder and robbery, attacked Suzunosuke Kose, 26, with a knife at 5:38 a.m. Sunday at a police box in the city of Suita.
The knife used in the attack had a blade as long as 15 centimeters. The police said it penetrated Kose's lung, reaching his heart. Kose was reportedly stabbed at least seven times and remains in a coma.
While Iimori has denied the allegations, he also blamed the incident on his illness, according to investigators. He is a holder of a mental disability certificate.
The police said about 10 minutes before the attack, someone, who gave the name of one of Imori's former classmates, called in a report of a home break-in.
The police suspect it was Iimori making a false report in an attempt to lure police officers from the police box, according to investigative sources.
Iimori had contacted a junior high school classmate through Facebook and asked for his address before the incident, the sources said.
About three and a half hours after the stabbing, a man with blood on his hands purchased clothes and shoes at a nearby shopping mall. Fingerprints left on the shoebox, which was left at the mall, and those on a knife cover found at the crime scene matched, according to the sources.
Iimori was arrested early Monday after the police found him in a mountainous area in northern Osaka Prefecture, not far from the crime scene and in possession of the stolen pistol.
The gun contained five bullets when stolen, but only four when it was retrieved, the police said. There were signs the gun had been fired and residents near the police box reported hearing an explosive sound about 20 minutes after the attack.
Iimori was wearing a light blue cap, a dark red jacket, navy pants and shoes at the time of his arrest. But security camera footage shows him walking around the police box just before the attack wearing a white cap.
The police suspect Iimori changed into different clothing as he fled and are now searching for the clothes and shoes he had on earlier.
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