Japanese police stated on Saturday that the body of a Chinese woman was found in a mountain forest in Tsukuba City, Ibaraki Prefecture on Tuesday, Japan's Jiji News reported, adding the case was preliminary classified by prefecture police as homicide and corpse abandonment based on situation on site.

The Chinese Embassy in Japan said that it has requested the Japanese police to ascertain the cause of death as soon as possible and will provide necessary consular protection and assistance to the deceased's relatives, according to CCTV News on Saturday.

The deceased surnamed Shi, 54, was self-employed and living in Tsuchiura City of Ibaraki. Shi's husband reported to police on December 22, 2025 that he cannot contact his estranged wife. The husband, accompanied by police, checked her residence but was unable to confirm whether Shi was at home. A missing case was later filed, according to Senkai News. 

Media reports citing local police said that Shi was last spotted on the evening of December 20 at a local retail store. 

TBS News reported that her body was found in a mountain forest in Kamisugama, Tsukuba city, approximately 25 kilometers away from her residence on January 27. A judicial autopsy failed to determine the exact cause of death, but there is suspicion of death by suffocation, and the deceased had fractured ribs and skin sloughing on the neck.

Global Times