Prosecutors in the trial over a 2017 apartment fire in Kitakyushu that killed six people have disclosed a new statement in which the defendant said he stopped near the building and smoked a cigarette on the day of the blaze. The defendant, Koji Inoue, 58, denied making the remark and again denied any role in the fire at a hearing on November 5.
The fire destroyed the two-story Nakamura-so apartment building in Kokurakita Ward in May 2017. Six of the 14 people inside at the time died. Investigators struggled to establish the cause, and police did not arrest Inoue, a former resident of the building, until 2024, seven years after the fire.
Hiroshi Hashimoto, then head of the Fukuoka Prefectural Police's first investigation division, said at the time of the arrest that he had not forgotten the case for a single day and had never given up on arresting a suspect.
Defendant questioned at length
At the November 5 session at the Fukuoka District Public Prosecutors Office's Kokura branch, Inoue was asked by his lawyer about his memory of May 7, 2017. "I have no memory of anything," he said. Asked why he could be certain he had not gone to Nakamura-so, he replied: "Because I have no business there."
In the opening hearing in October, Inoue pleaded not guilty, saying, "I am not involved." His defense has argued that the fire may have had a cause other than arson and that he had no motive to set it.
Prosecutors have pointed to testimony that Inoue, while living in the building, complained to other residents about the management company and said something like "Shall I set it on fire?" They have also cited a gas torch seized from his home that is consistent with the one used in the crime. About 30 witnesses, including police officers who handled the investigation and residents of the building at the time, have testified so far.
New statement read in court
The new statement concerns what Inoue told prosecutors during questioning after his arrest. According to the prosecution, he said he stopped near Nakamura-so and smoked a cigarette on the day of the fire. The defense had previously maintained that Inoue did not go near the building that day.
Questioned about the statement, Inoue said he had no memory of smoking near Nakamura-so on the day of the fire. Asked why he had signed the record if he had no memory of the act, he answered: "That's right."
He also said he had lived in the building for about a month and had not visited it since moving out, repeating that he had no reason to go there. He said he had no trouble with other residents while living there and denied having a motive for arson.