Japan woman charged in 1 of 6 ex-partner deaths

In this photo taken in March, Chisako Kakehi is surrounded by reporters in Sakai, western Japan. AP

TOKYO — Japanese prosecutors have charged a 68-year-old woman with murder, weeks after police arrested her on suspicion of poisoning her latest husband, one of six men who died while in a relationship with her over the past 20 years.

Chisako Kakehi has denied responsibility in the deaths.

Japanese public broadcaster NHK says Kyoto district prosecutors indicted Kakehi on Wednesday over the death of her 75-year-old husband, Isao. He died in December 2013, a month after they married. Police found cyanide in his body, and arrested his wife last month.

Police have said they suspect insurance claims or inheritance money could be the motive for the killings. Other cases are still under investigation.

Phone calls to the prosecutors’ office were not answered late Wednesday.