Two teenagers were stabbed, one fatally, at a McDonald's restaurant in Kitakyushu, Fukuoka Prefecture, in southwestern Japan, on December 14.

Police said the two junior high school students, a girl and a boy both aged 15, were standing in line at the cash register at around 8:30 p.m. when a man came into the store and stabbed them without saying anything.

They said the female student was stabbed in the stomach and died, while her male friend sustained a stab wound on his lower back.

According to the police, the boy said the stabber was a complete stranger. They do not know whether the girl was acquainted with him.

The suspect is believed to be about 40 years old, around 170 centimeters tall and of medium build.

He was wearing a gray jacket, black pants and yellowish shoes at the time of the incident.

The police said he likely fled with the sharp object he used in the attack as the weapon has not been found.

They are searching for the whereabouts of the assailant on suspicion of murder with an investigative team comprising 91 members.