Five pensioners have been killed in their homes in a stabbing spree in rural Japan allegedly by a neighbour who had tweeted about stalking and telepathy before the killings . The suspect was named by police as Tatsuhiko Hirano , an unemployed man reportedly described as a 'hikikomori ' - or social misfit . Police found the bloodied bodies of a man and a woman , both aged around 80 , in the main house on the site on the quiet island of Awajishima . Two unconscious women , aged around 60 and 80 , were discovered in another building , while a badly wounded man in his 60s was found outside . All three were rushed to hospital and were later confirmed dead , police said . Massacre in rural Japan : Detectives comb the scene in Sumoto city on the Japanese island of Awajishima where five pensioners were stabbed to death by a neighbour who has reportedly confessed to the killings . The alarm was raised by a 32-year-old woman who rang police to say her parents had been stabbed . The 40-year-old suspect is being quizzed by detectives , but the motive was unclear and police have yet to find the weapon used in the attacks . Local media said Hirano 's clothes were spattered with blood and that he had admitted to the multiple killing . A Twitter account that appeared to be run by the suspect had been used over the past month . Tweets included one with the address of the homicides and a map of the scene . Other tweets appeared to be about telepathy and stalking . The attacks happened in Sumoto , a small city on an island in western Japan , said deputy police chief Keizo Okumoto . Hirano lives in the area with his father and grandmother , Jiji Press reported . Locals told the agency he rarely leaves his home and has largely been isolated from society since his school days . Map showing Awajishima in Japan where police arrested a man suspected of stabbing five people to death . The phenomenon of so-called 'hikikomori ' -- literally 'the withdrawn ' -- rears its head fairly frequently in Japan . Often it applies to maladjusted people in their teens or early 20s who shut themselves away for years in their parents ' homes , many living in darkened bedrooms with little or no human contact . While many eventually emerge , others continue well into adulthood , protected from the pressures of life by their ageing parents . Violent crime is relatively rare in Japan and even more so in most small towns . Sumoto , a city of 44,000 people on Awaji island , is known for its oranges , onions and Awaji beef . Japanese television stations showed the victims ' homes surrounded by agricultural fields . 'Normally , we get one call a day , if that , ' Mr Okumoto said . 'And usually it 's about a bike theft or someone getting beaten up . '
Bodies of man and woman in their 80s found dead by police in one house . Two women in 60s and 80s and man in 60s found with fatal injuries nearby . Comment: He has been described in Japan as a 'hikikomori ' - literally 'the withdrawn ' His Twitter account had the address of the homicides and a map of scene . Other tweets on the account appeared to be about telepathy and stalking .