Japan - Miyazawa family of 4 murdered, Setagaya, Tokyo, 30 Dec 2000 #3

[MesquiteO21]

This is what I am wondering about.

I always thought that the perpetrator:
1) either had a potential target
2) or, confused the houses
3) or maybe, it was out of rage but somehow, he needed to know/observe the family

What if the situation indeed includes two people?

I don't know about the base, I think it is a red herring because this information has appeared recently, but what if there indeed were two people:

- one watched the house or the inhabitants, or, like @Sor Juana mentioned, all you need is to have minimal information about the inhabitants' habits

Or, there is a lot of information one can get from the park if one merges in with the observers, and really, really, doesn't stand out at all? A mom with kids, or an old guy, anyone.

To get into the house, one has to be slim and lithe and fit
To kill the inhabitants, rather trained (or having the habits of the killer - maybe he enjoys it?)

But what really surprises me is as if the goals differ:

1) - to kill four people. That's our typical case, a SK, a sadist, a torturer... whoever. Half of our traits are about this case

2) the second part is about searching for something. That something is small and has value. It is difficult to trace.

I don't know what it could be. An family heirloom - an award from WWII times? Can be sold on any Axis forum. Or, a piece of jewelry. A jade bracelet now costs a premium, for example. Or, good Japanese pearls? Or, even an old sketch of a Japanese master?

I honestly don't know how and where the TMPD lifted the fingerprints, but I wonder if they, too, could be planted intentionally? The DNA is probably real, because at that time, the murderer could not know the future value of the DNA. The "whorls" might have no value.

I wonder if there was a second person, a "spotter" or a "tipster" that provided the information. The killing was really, to leave no traces.

Why didn't he repeat the murders? Well, perhaps there is no sense in it because they became better at stealing? Nowadays, there is more information online.

I wonder what exactly was taken or what did the pattern of search hinted at? Maybe it is in someone's collection now? Also, what expensive Japanese trinkets could be sold on Ebay soon after?

my only problem with the second perp theory is that police haven't indicated they suspect that...unless that would be something they are keeping secret for some reason? reports seem to indicate the DNA found in the house only belonged to one perp. But like you mentioned maybe there was a "spotter" and police aren't even aware there was another person involved.

from what i've found, some money was taken (not all i don't think?) but i haven't seen anything about whether objects were missing. papers were found strewn about so it kind of reads to me like a fake/staged robbery.

i just can't shake the feeling that Rei being killed first and with a different method is significant and probably the key. The most straightforward, logical, Occam's Razor meaning of that, to me, is that he was the target probably for a kidnapping/abduction and it went awry. Police suspect there was a scuffle between Rei and the perp and that's what caused Mikio to come up the stairs. But if the perp entered Rei's room with the intent to just kill him off the bat, i'm confident he'd be able to very quickly and easily incapacitate an unsuspecting child and there wouldn't have been much of a struggle. But if he wanted to take Rei alive, Rei would have the chance to struggle and fight. JMO.