TOKYO, Jan 15 — A man was arrested Thursday for allegedly stabbing two men, one of them fatally, who had come to his Tokyo apartment to carry out a court-ordered eviction, police said, Kyodo News reported.

The 40-year-old resident, who identified himself as Hiroshi Yamamoto, was arrested several hundred metres away from the apartment in Suginami Ward on suspicion of attempted murder. 

A kitchen knife was recovered from the scene.

One of the victims, an employee of a rent guarantee company, was later confirmed dead, while the other victim, a court enforcement officer, was conscious. 

Both were in their 60s.

The man had fallen behind on rent payments, an investigative source said. 

He admitted to the charges, saying, “As I was losing my place to live, I stabbed the two, thinking I would kill myself too,” according to the source.

An emergency call reporting the incident was made at around 10.15am.

When the two men arrived at the apartment, they saw the man holding a box with smoke coming out of it. 

As they tried to escape to the street, he stabbed the court officer in the chest and the other man in the back, according to the police.

A fire broke out inside the room, with the man having ignited a gas cylinder for a portable stove, they said.

The Tokyo District Court, which had sent the officer, said in a statement that the incident is “very regrettable” and it will consider measures to ensure the safety of enforcement. — Bernama-Kyodo