NAKANO, Nagano Prefecture—Residents in this normally quiet mountainous city were trying to return to a sense of normalcy on May 26 after being shaken and terrified by a deadly assault and a gunman on the run.

Their ordeal started when the city issued an emergency notice in the late afternoon of May 25.

“An incident involving gunfire has occurred. As the suspect is currently on the loose, please stay indoors.”

A 57-year-old company employee heard the emergency warning on a public announcement speaker and then saw police officers blocking traffic and telling drivers to turn around near his office.

“Police cars were lined up and officers were running around. I was scared and felt unsafe,” he said.

City officials designated the surrounding area an “evacuation zone,” and told residents there to take shelter in a gymnasium at a nearby junior high school.

One frightened resident in his 70s said, “I wonder what happened.”

The situation was fluid, and residents scrambled for any information about what was happening in their city.

They heard reports that four people, including two police officers, were injured, and that the assailant, who could also be carrying a knife, had yet to be apprehended.

A woman whose child attends the school that became an evacuation shelter said: “I never thought that something like this could happen. I’m too scared to walk outside.”

Even Nakano Mayor Takahide Yumoto lacked the full information about what had transpired early on.

“I don’t know the details of the situation,” he said. “But residents are feeling anxious, and I hope the incident will be quickly resolved.”

A QUIET PERSON

The crisis continued overnight, at a house in a residential area covered by fields and farmland.

Early on May 26, Masanori Aoki, 31, was arrested on suspicion of murder after surrendering to police at the house, which is owned by his father, Masamichi Aoki, 57, chairman of the Nakano city assembly.

The suspect is a farmer, police said. Neighbors said he lived with his parents and also worked at a gelato shop run by his father.

Masanori reportedly had received a permit to possess a hunting rifle from the Nagano Prefectural Public Safety Commission.

One neighbor watched the suspect barricade himself inside his father’s home at around 4:30 p.m. on May 25.

He said the suspect wore a red vest and camouflage clothing, and he entered and exited the house several times, carrying what looked like a rifle.

The neighbor said he heard plainclothes police officers yelling at the suspect, “Put down the gun.” But the gunman did not follow the orders.

The neighbor said the suspect was expressionless and never shouted during the standoff.

Two family members managed to escape from the house. And eventually, Masanori gave up.

A woman’s body was later found in the area, bringing to four the number of fatalities in the crime spree.

The neighbor said he had often seen Masanori driving a light truck.

“He was a quiet man, and there were no problems with him in the neighborhood,” the neighbor said. “I don’t know why such an incident happened.”

RELIEVED BUT STILL ON EDGE

Residents at the junior high school gymnasium breathed a sigh of relief after learning that the gunman had been arrested.

The city said 88 people from 39 households in evacuation returned to their homes just after 7 a.m. on May 26.

“We had been told by the police that the evacuation could last a long time,” said a 63-year-old company employee who evacuated with his wife and father.

He said he was relieved that he could leave the shelter after one night.

Children in the city went to school accompanied by their parents. Some parents held their children tight.

Hirano Elementary School, which has about 480 pupils, had considered suspending classes. But the school decided to open as usual after the suspect was arrested.

Worried about the pupils’ mental state from news about the attacks, the school sent an email to parents asking them to accompany their children to school.

The school also increased the number of teachers watching over the children.

A woman in her 50s who came to the school with her fourth-grade child said, “I was anxious because of the lack of information but was relieved as the suspect was arrested.”

Her child said, “I couldn’t sleep because I was so worried.”

The school also decided to have the children walk home in groups for the time being and will continue to provide psychological care.

“This is an unbelievable, heartbreaking incident,” the principal said. “This made our commitment to protect the safety of the children even stronger.”

(This article was written by Shoko Mifune, Kazuki Endo and Arata Mitsui.)