A couple were arrested in Okayama, Japan on Monday after letting their 2-year-old daughter spend more than a week combating agonizing scalding before they took her to a hospital just minutes before she died, Japanese police said.

Kazutoshi Aki and his wife Midori were arrested for the murder of their 2-year-old daughter, Miho.

They freely admitted to the allegations.

"We did treat her, but didn't really care if she died," 39-year-old company employee Aki told the police.

Police said 40-year-old Midori Aki was preparing to put her daughter in the bath on the night of Oct. 25 when little Miho picked up a shower and turned it on herself, letting loose a stream of near-boiling water that severely scalded her head and back.

Mrs. Aki splashed the girl's burns with sterilizer, but then left her in agony for more than a week.

Finally, on Sunday afternoon, the parents saw their daughter had collapsed in exhaustion and decided to take her to a hospital.

Miho died within minutes of arriving. An autopsy will be carried out to determine the exact cause of Miho's death.

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