A Japanese English student has been charged with the rape and murder of British teacher Lindsay Hawker.
Tatsuya Ichihashi, 30, was accused of the offences by police in Japan who arrested him last month after more than two-and-a-half years on the run.
When he was captured in Osaka, it is thought Ichihashi might have been attempting to board a ferry to Okinawa, a chain of islands at the southern tip of Japan.
He was caught after a surgeon came forward with information about Ichihashi, who is believed to have had surgery to change his appearance.
Miss Hawker, 22, a Leeds University graduate, was last seen alive on March 25 2007 with Ichihashi.
She was working in Japan to pursue her dream of teaching English. It is thought she met Ichihashi after offering to give him an English lesson.
The battered and bound body of the young teacher was found buried naked in a sand-filled bathtub at Ichihashi's flat in Tokyo.
In a statement, Miss Hawker's parents Bill and Julia, of Brandon near Coventry, said they are relieved he has been charged.
They said: "Our fight for justice for our daughter Lindsay was directed at the capture of Tatsuya Ichihashi. It was a long two years and seven months battle.
"The Japanese police and justice system will now deal with him, in line with Japanese law."
