Lindsay Hawker, the English teacher murdered in Japan, was filmed on closed-circuit television chatting to her suspected killer just before being strangled and buried in an earth-filled bath.

Footage broadcast on Japanese television shows Tatsuya Ichihashi, 28, standing next to Ms Hawker, 22, as he paid for drinks in a coffee shop close to his home on the morning of Sunday, March 25. After an English conversation lesson in the coffee shop, the pair were filmed in front of the local railway station and by a third security camera as they entered Mr Ichihashi’s suburban apartment building.

Ms Hawker’s body was found there the next evening, moments after Mr Ichihashi escaped from under the noses of nine police officers.

In a further twist, detectives discovered strands of Ms Hawker’s hair of between four and eight inches in a rubbish bag left out by Mr Ichihashi, as well as articles of her clothing.

Until the release of the camera footage, it was assumed that Mr Ichihashi had used the English lesson as a pretext to lure Ms Hawker to his apartment. The new information had led to speculation over the reasons for Ms Hawker’s visit to his home. “The only thing I can think of is that he didn’t have money then,” one Japanese commentator said yesterday. “He must have told her that he’d pay her at his home.”

The blurred footage shows Mr Ichihashi and Ms Hawker walking up to the counter of the Doutor coffee shop, opposite Gyotoku station in the city of Ichikawa, a few hundred yards from his apartment. He is wearing a brown jacket and a black woollen hat; Ms Hawker is wearing a knee-length white coat and carrying a blue bag and an umbrella. Ms Hawker touches and strokes her hair, in a gesture of apparent nervousness. The two can be seen exchanging words.

Investigators show no sign of being any closer to finding Mr Ichihashi. Last Friday police stopped a morning rush-hour train at Baraki-Nakayama station, two stops from Gyotoku, after a tip-off that Mr Ichihashi was on board. A policeman announced over the driver’s loudspeaker system that he was looking for the suspect — giving him the chance to slip away had he been on board.

On Saturday several witnesses reported seeing a man fitting the description close to his apartment, but police could not find him. The investigation team has been expanded from 100 to 150 officers, dogs have been used to try to find Mr Ichihashi’s trail and more than 80 people have been interviewed.

Japan’s lively internet chat rooms are filled with wild speculation and unsubstantiated rumour. Many people have speculated that Mr Ichihashi had links to Japan’s gangsters, the yakuza, which could explain his disappearance. Others suggest that he has killed himself.

On Sunday Ms Hawker’s father, William, issued a statement pleading for information on Mr Ichihashi’s whereabouts.

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