Police in Koga, Ibaraki prefecture, have arrested 49-year-old Masae Sakurai on suspicion of assault after she allegedly stitched her roommate's lips shut with a needle and thread.
Sakurai, a part-time worker, is accused of sewing the upper and lower lips of the 42-year-old victim at roughly 1.30 pm on 29 June at the home they shared. The victim fled the property the following afternoon and ran to a nearby shop, where she showed staff a note pleading for help before employees contacted police. The two women had been living together at Sakurai's residence since around April 2025, and police said other people had also been staying at the property.
Sakurai was taken into custody on Monday. The motive for the alleged attack remains unclear.