Police arrested a 40-year-old man believed to have fled a suspected murder scene on Sunday in which three people with blunt trauma injuries were found dead in Saitama Prefecture, north of Tokyo, according to investigators.

The man, who lives in the area in Hanno, has been arrested on suspicion of murdering one of the victims, investigators said.

The police received several calls at around 7:15 a.m. reporting that a man had been beaten, with officers finding the bodies of a man and two women who suffered blunt trauma injuries to their heads and necks when they arrived at the premises around 7:30 a.m.

Police patrol the area where three bodies were discovered in Hanno, Saitama Prefecture, eastern Japan, on Dec. 25, 2022. (Kyodo)

The house belongs to a couple in their 60s and their daughter, according to the police. Their bodies were all found outdoors.

A witness told the police that a man wearing dark-colored clothing holding an object resembling a hammer fled the scene. He was also caught on a nearby security camera.

Police received a call reporting people arguing in the garden, and another emergency call around 7:25 a.m. reporting smoke coming from the second floor of the house.

The fire was put out around an hour and a half later after burning part of the property. Police are investigating whether it was deliberately lit.

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