Father begs Japanese to help find killer

By Linda Sieg

TOKYO (Reuters) - The father of a young British woman whose naked body was found in a bathtub filled with sand begged the Japanese public on Sunday to help catch his daughter's killer, saying the killer had "brought shame" on Japan.

Lindsay Ann Hawker, 22, a teacher from Brandon near Coventry, was found dead, apparently suffocated, last Monday in the city of Ichikawa, east of Tokyo.

Police have issued an arrest warrant and launched a nationwide hunt for Tatsuya Ichihashi, 28, the Japanese man who lived alone in the apartment where her body was found. The warrant is for "abandoning a corpse".

"My daughter loved this country. She loved meeting Japanese people, and thought of Japan as an honourable society, built on trust and respect," William Hawker said in a statement read at a brief news conference by British Ambassador to Japan Graham Fry.

"My daughter's killer has now brought shame on your country. He must be caught. He cannot be allowed to hide away," said the statement, which Fry read in English and Japanese.

"I still respect this country and its people. I know that you place great importance on family and community links.

"So, as a father, I appeal to you -- if anyone can help the police to find my daughter's killer, I beg you to come forward."

Ichihashi fled when police arrived to question him on Monday, losing his shoes and a rucksack he was carrying in a chase.