Tomoyuki Mukaide had struggled to cope with the demands of assisting people affected by the earthquake that struck Ishikawa prefecture in March.

The 44-year-old officer knifed himself at his home in northwestern Japan on May 23, but told police he had been attacked, prompting anattempted murderinvestigation, Ishikawa prefecture police said in a statement.

Investigators began to suspect his story after they could not find evidence of anyone who matched the description the officer had given, a police spokesman said.

Suspicions were also raised because the officer - identified as Tomoyuki Mukaide in the Asahi newspaper - had waited about an hour before reporting the alleged attack, the spokesman said. His wounds were not life-threatening.

The officer, whose name was not released by police, had been in charge of a disaster relief detail following a March 25 earthquake in the area that killed one person injured more than 300, and damaged or destroyed more than 14,800 homes.

Police thought he had become distraught over his health after putting in long hours without a break in the quake's aftermath, and wanted to get away from work.

"He became very busy, he felt like he couldn't handle the work he had to do, and he felt the work was weighing him down," said the spokesman.

The officer admitted he had stabbed himself in questioning following his May 31 release from the hospital, the spokesman said. The case is now being investigated as filing a false report, a misdemeanor.

Japanese workers often face long overtime hours and weekends with little or no compensation.

Death from overwork, known as "karoshi," has steadily increased since the Health Ministry first recognized the phenomenon in 1987.

(AP)