Stray cat named as prime suspect in attempted murder of elderly woman

The daughter of an elderly woman found her mother bleeding profusely from about 20 cuts on her face

A stray cat is pictured at La Recoleta cemetery in Buenos Aires (EITAN ABRAMOVICH/AFP/Getty Images) (AFP/Getty Images)

A stray cat is said to be the prime suspect in an attempted murder investigation in Japan.

The daughter of an elderly bedridden woman found her mother bleeding profusely from about 20 cuts on her face, according to local broadcaster RKK. The daughter called the police, which launched an attempted murder investigation after they saw the severe wounds.

“When we found her, blood covered everything above her chin. Her face was soaked in blood. I didn’t know what had happened,” the daughter told the news outlet.

Mayuko Matsumoto, who is 82 and reportedly unable to speak, had to receive emergency care, Kyodo News said.

But despite the seriousness of the injuries, investigators apparently found no evidence showing that people entered or left the house at the time of the suspected attack.

Police then realized that the wounds looked like cat scratches.

According to newspaper Nishinippon Shimbun, stray cats often loiter outside Ms Matsumoto’s house in the mountainous town of Mifune, located in the Kumamoto Prefecture of southern Japan.

“Police are analyzing a blood sample taken from the claw of a cat that might have scratched the victim,” national broadcaster NHK reported.

A police spokesman declined to directly comment to AFP on the case, but told the outlet that investigators were not disputing the media reports.