Japan: British schoolteacher found dead in a bath of sand in a Tokyo apartment had been badly beaten and strangled

Ben Quinn:

Lindsay Hawker, 22, was struck several times before being throttled at the high-rise home of the main suspect now being hunted for her murder.

Police are still looking for Tatsuya Ichihashi, 28, who was seen fleeing the scene barefoot.

Miss Hawker’s father, Bill, and her boyfriend Ryan Garside have flown to Japan to formally identify the body and make arrangements for her to be returned to the UK.

The results of a post-mortem examination concluded that Miss Hawker, from Brandon near Coventry, died by asphyxiation caused by strangulation.

A police spokesman said he did not know whether the English language teacher had been sexually assaulted.

Ichihashi, who was described in the Japanese press as a "doctor’s pampered son," is wanted on suspicion of abandoning her body.

Police spokesman Akira Ebihara said that Ichihashi first approached Miss Hawker about possible English lessons on March 21. He followed her from the railway station back to her apartment in Funabashi, where she let him in because her flatmate was home, Mr Ebihara said.

Once inside, he drew a picture of the teacher and wrote down his name and number.

Mr Ebihara said Miss Hawker, who had worked in Japan for five months, agreed to give him an English lesson last Sunday morning at his flat in Ichikawa. She was reported missing the following day by the Nova language school after she failed to answer her mobile phone.

Visiting the address left by Ichihashi, police found Miss Hawker’s body in the bath, completely buried under sand except for one hand. Her handbag, identification documents and clothes were found nearby. Neighbours apparently heard scraping noises coming from the fourth floor flat.

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