He carried the knife in it no? The bag was big enough to carry the sashimi knife safely while he either climbed in the window or over the balcony. It wouldn’t look great walking around holding a large knife.
I can't speak to coverage but here is a still from CCTV in late 2000 showing suspects of a COMPLETELY SEPERATE CASE murder in Ibaraki, at a convenience store before the crime. Poor quality but enough to make out clothing and features.
Not impossible! But would add to the theory that he should have been captured on CCTV if in a hotel or remembered by a clerk as suspicious due to his outfits and injuries… but just wasn’t by either. I believe there was a nationwide search of hotel booking records after the murder but that was perhaps focused on foreigners as I believe they had to have their passports copied if they stayed in a hotel in Japan. I don’t remember all the details on that though…
Thank you @TokyoSleuth this is the kind of thing I was hoping to see! If that were convenience store quality do you think a train station’s CCTV would be more or less? If he were captured on CCTV even by the standards in the image you attached, he would definitely be noticeable in the sweater if he wore it… and if he travelled to the house via train, was he already wearing the outfit that he murdered the Miyazawas in? I feel like if he did he would have been seen instantly.
Does anyone know what the outside temperature was in Setagaya on the night of the murders? He ditched the coat he had been wearing so was this shirt he had taken from Mikio's closet been enough to combat the cold weather that night if the perp had a long walk home?
According to this website the temperature in Tokyo was between 6c - 2c that night between 12-6am. What was supposedly stolen was a sweater… so perhaps warm enough to be outside for a little while? But he would’ve definitely been cold if outside for a long time on foot for example…
Possibly. This is the most obvious and easiest scenario to imagine. However, it is not the only scenario. For the sake of considering alternative scenarios that can always be ruled out later, the knife could be wrapped in a handkerchief and kept in a pocket, even though some part of it might stick out. One reason to keep a knife in a pocket is for better control. If it were in a bag, it could be risky if one slips and falls on their back, for example. JMO.
I’m not sure here because the knife was 34cm in length, with the blade itself 21cm… that’s a rather large knife I feel like?
How would they know the color? They can know the size (approximately) and perhaps the brand, but don’t sneakers come in different colors?
I assumed that the pattern on the sole of the shoe only came in one colour but with a design variation on the shoe and that’s how they were so sure of it.
I do realise that taxi drivers were surveyed extensively. However, it all comes down to the questions they were asked. If they were asked about a single man wearing a sweater with "DIVE" on it, having his wrist bandaged, and travelling from Point Zero (which was close enough to the crime scene), there could be a variety of answers. Apparently, there wasn't a single answer that fit all criteria.
All very good points here, and it’s because of these points that I find it astounding he supposedly disappeared without a trace or so much of an inkling of how he did it… for me personally I’ve got to go with he had a car out of there… perhaps not immediate but after he walked or rushed down the path beside the river under darkness to a parked car and then drove off to wherever.
Yes, sizewise, the bag seems more suitable for carrying a knife of that size. We don’t know exactly what he took from the house besides the cash. Where did he put it? If his right hand was injured, he might have placed the cash in his left pants pocket. Was it large enough to hold all the cash? Alternatively, he could have found a bag from the Miyazawas, similar to his fanny bag, or maybe a canvas bag that looks like a grocery shopping bag, something that appears ordinary. He would have needed something to fit both the cash and possibly other items he stole. It seems plausible that he took a light, loose coat from Mikio, perhaps a hat as well, and probably a bag. JMO.
I completely agree that using a car is the best way to avoid attention. If that was the case, why did he spend so much time at the crime scene? Why didn’t he leave earlier? Although we don’t know the exact time he left, some media reports insist that he spent hours there and left just before dawn.
My thoughts on that are that he was resting to regain his energy and trying to stem the bleeding on his hand/hands, as well as rifling through the drawers and documents etc. Though his stay was extended longer than I feel it needed to be… Was he waiting for the right moment to leave if someone were picking him up by car maybe? Or perhaps he was in panic-mode about what he had just done, needed to change his clothing, needed to stem his bleeding, eat and drink something to calm his nerves…
