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Cyanide found after Japanese woman arrested for poisoning husband

Japanese police detected a small amount of cyanide in material confiscated from a woman accused of killing her husband with poison, local media reported Thursday.

Police arrested 67-year-old Chisako Kakehi on Wednesday on suspicion of having used cyanide in the murder of her husband Isao in December, after finding a lethal dose of the substance in the 75-year-old victim's blood, broadcaster NHK reported.

Kakehi denied the accusation to local media.

An autopsy revealed the victim had no burns on his throat or aesophagus, leading investigators to believe he might have consumed the substance in food, NHK reported.

The couple came to know each other through a matchmaking agency and her husband was reportedly covered by life insurance.

Police have reopened an investigation into the earlier death of a 71-year-old man in Osaka involving the same suspect, NHK said.

The man died when he fell while riding a motorcycle in March 2012. Investigators found traces of cyanide in a stored blood sample, though he was then judged to have died from heart disease.

Kakehi said she had married four times and that several other former partners had died within a few years of marrying her or starting relationships with her, the Kyodo News agency reported.

Police reportedly have no evidence that she obtained cyanide or of how Isao consumed the substance.

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