An 81-year-old Japanese man was arrested on Thursday for pushing his wheelchair-bound wife of 40 years into the sea, killing her, according to Japanese reports.
Hiroshi Fujiwara, from eastern Japan, reportedly said he was "tired" of taking care of his disabled spouse, 79-year-old Teruko, and admitted to pushing her off a pier.
After the act, Fujiwara reportedly went to his eldest son's home, where he confessed to the murder, according to local reports. He was arrested after his son turned him in to local police.
As per Japanese news outlet Mainichi Shimbun, a fisherman who discovered Teruko's corpse floating in the water also contacted authorities not long after Fujiwara was detained.
Elder abuse in Japan at record high
The incident comes amid a worrying trend in the Land of the Rising Sun, where elder abuse among relatives of the victim skyrocketed in recent years.
According to the Japan Times, the number of elder abuse by relatives in the nation rose by 2.1% during fiscal 2020, which ended in March 2021, to a record 17,281 cases.
Nearly 70% of elder abuse victims suffered physical abuse, according to data gathered by the Japanese welfare ministry.