The suspect in the deaths of three family members last month at a residence in Saitama Prefecture, north of Tokyo, has denied killing them, police said Wednesday.

DNA from blood found on clothing confiscated from the home of the suspect, Jun Saito, 40, matches that of all three victims, police also said, adding they suspect it was worn by Saito at the time of the crime.

The suspect had been refusing to talk since his arrest on Dec. 25 for the murder the same day of his neighbor William Bishop, a 69-year-old U.S. national.

"I did not do it. I have no recollection," he was quoted as saying recently. Bishop's wife Izumi Morita, 68, and their daughter Sophianna Megumi Morita, 32, were also found dead with blunt trauma injuries outside their Hanno residence.

Saito was sent to prosecutors on Dec. 27 for allegedly killing Bishop by hitting him with a blunt object on Christmas morning. He is also under investigation for the deaths of Morita and Sophianna.

The family's home security camera caught a man who appeared to be the suspect attacking the victims.

Police also confiscated multiple blunt objects, including an ax, from his home.

Although the three were found dead outside the property, traces of blood discovered inside the residence suggest they were also attacked indoors, police have said.

The suspect is being investigated over possibly harboring a grudge against the family.

Photo taken Dec. 26, 2022, shows a blue sheet-covered residential site (back) where three people with blunt trauma injuries were found dead the previous day in the Saitama Prefecture city of Hanno, north of Tokyo. (Kyodo)

There was a fire at the victims' home on the day of the alleged murder and the police suspect Saito tried to set the house on fire. The police have found a partially burnt polyethylene tank with traces of kerosene at the house, investigative sources have said.

According to the police, the couple made six reports of property damage between August and December 2021, but while Saito was suspected and arrested three times last year, he was not prosecuted in any of the cases.

The police quoted the couple as telling them they did not personally know Saito when he was arrested last January for allegedly damaging their vehicle.

A long-time resident of Japan, Bishop was a board member of Temple University Japan from 2010 to 2018, later becoming an emeritus member.


Related coverage:

Blood found on clothing owned by suspect in deaths of 3 near Tokyo

Man sent to prosecutors after 3 found dead near Tokyo

Man arrested over 3 killed in murder near Tokyo