A father who supposedly restricted his mentally ill son in a little cage for more than twenty years was arrested on Saturday in western Japan, police said.

A  73-year-old Yoshitane Yamasaki was detained on suspicion of imprisoning his son, now aged 42, at their home in town of Sanda in Hyogo prefecture, a local police spokesman told AFP.

Further details of the case weren't available since the analysis is still underway, '' the spokesman said.

Based on the local media accounts, the son was made to reside within a wooden cage -- one metre (3.3 ft) high and 1.8 metre wide -- constructed in a prefabricated hut beside the main house.

The defendant has reportedly confessed the allegations.

“I made my son live in a cage for more than 20 years because he has mental problems and acted up,” the father earlier told city officials, according to public broadcaster NHK.

The father said he fed his son and let him bathe every other day.

The son, whose name has been withheld, is in a stable condition but is suffering from a bent back, NHK said, adding that he was sent to a welfare facility.

Source: http://aderonkebamidele.com/heartless-father-locked-up-son-for-twenty-years/