Full Breakdown
Asahiyama Zoo Delays Summer Opening After Employee Confesses to Disposing Wife’s Body
4/30/2026, 2:36:30 AM
Incident Overview
On April 23, a male Asahiyama Zoo employee in his 30s told Hokkaido prefectural police that he had placed his missing wife’s body in the zoo’s incinerator and burned it for several hours. Police immediately searched the zoo grounds, the employee’s home and seized three vehicles, including a zoo-branded truck. The zoo’s planned summer reopening on April 29 was postponed.
Background and Seasonal Closure
Asahiyama Zoo, opened in 1967 in Asahikawa, Hokkaido, draws over one million visitors annually and 1.33 million in 2025. The park closes each spring for a three-week maintenance break, which began on April 8.
Timeline of Key Events
- Late March 2024 – The employee’s wife, also in her 30s, stopped responding to contacts; a friend filed a missing-person report.
- April 23 – Police interview the employee, who admits using the incinerator.
- April 24-25 – Police inspect the incinerator and surrounding zoo areas.
- April 29 – Original reopening date, delayed after the confession.
- April 30 – Mayor Hirosuke Imazu holds a press conference, calling the case an “unprecedented crisis.”
- May 1 – Zoo announces a tentative reopening, pending investigation.
Impact and Economic Loss
The closure overlaps with Golden Week, Japan’s busiest travel period, and is estimated to cost Asahikawa roughly ¥150 million (? $950,000) in lost revenue. No human remains have been recovered; investigators say the high-temperature incinerator may have destroyed evidence.
Official Statements
Mayor Hirosuke Imazu apologized for the “great inconvenience,” called the postponement a “painful decision,” and pledged full cooperation with police. Asahiyama Zoo said it will continue caring for animals and will cooperate fully. Hokkaido police confirmed the investigation remains ongoing, with no charges yet.
Public Concern and Criticism
Local residents fear the case could tarnish the zoo’s reputation and depress visitor numbers, threatening Asahikawa’s tourism revenue. University of Tokyo sociologists cite the incident as a symptom of workplace isolation and inadequate mental-health support.
Conflicting Reports
Media differ on the postponed reopening: some report a delay until “at least Friday” (April 30), others state a May 1 reopening. Authorities have not disclosed the cause of death or recovered any forensic material.
Verbatim Quotes
- “No one could have predicted it,” Mayor Hirosuke Imazu said. “I am overcome with immense anxiety, and I am facing a crisis of unprecedented magnitude.” — Hirosuke Imazu, Mayor of Asahikawa
- “disposed of the body in the zoo’s incinerator and burned it for several hours” — Unnamed Asahiyama Zoo employee (man in his 30s)
- “The police are currently conducting an investigation, and our facility will fully cooperate,” — Asahiyama Zoo spokesperson
- “One Asahikawa official said: “A zoo exists to be seen by visitors.” — Asahikawa city official
Next Steps
Police continue to search for any remaining evidence and have not announced charges. The zoo plans a security and monitoring overhaul and will reassess the reopening date after the investigation concludes.
