Asahiyama Zoo in northern Japan was forced to shut until May after police arrested a zoo employee on suspicion of illegally dumping his wife's body in a workplace incinerator before clocking in for his shift. The man, who is in his 30s, was questioned and allegedly confessed on April 23 to destroying her body at the Asahikawa attraction.
The woman had been reported missing last month, and police moved in after a concerned colleague phoned them when she was unable to get into contact with her. Investigators have yet to establish her cause of death.
The arrest has jolted a zoo that had already been closed for renovations ahead of the peak season, forcing it to postpone Golden Week celebrations as well. Mayor Hirosuke Imazu apologised for the “great inconvenience” and said delaying the opening was “painful,” while also thanking the public for the “many encouraging messages” that had been “a great source of strength for the zoo and its staff.”
Officials said the zoo was fully cooperating with the probe and that the animals were still being looked after despite the closure. They also warned visitors there could be “sudden closures or limiting access to certain areas” while authorities continue their investigation, which has included extensive searches in animal enclosures for clues related to the woman's death.
For Asahiyama Zoo, the immediate question is no longer whether it can reopen on schedule, but how much of the park can safely and visibly operate while police keep working inside it.
