Category: Crime

by Michael Gillan Peckitt May 14, 2025 Number of comments0
Children Crime Japan

Arrested Student Cites Reformatory as Aim of Chiba Murder

A 15-year-old male student arrested for the alleged murder of a woman in Chiba, near Tokyo, said that he wanted to go to juvenile reformatory to escape his complex home environment, according to investigative sources. This year, a parent of the junior high school third-year student consulted police about him running away from home for a short time, police and other sources said. Subsequently, meetings were held between the student and a consultant. A meeting session had been set also for Monday, when the student was arrested.

by Michael Gillan Peckitt May 13, 2025 Number of comments0
Crime Disability Elderly Japan

Chiba Boy Arrested for Alleged Murder of Elderly Woman

Police in Chiba Prefecture, east of Tokyo, arrested a 15-year-old junior high school boy in the city of Chiba, the prefecture’s capital, on Monday on suspicion of murdering an 84-year-old woman. The boy allegedly stabbed Yayoi Takahashi in the back with a knife-like object on a street in the city’s Wakaba Ward around 5 p.m. Sunday. He is admitting the allegation, investigative sources said. Police are investigating the possibility that the boy randomly attacked the woman as they did not know each other, according to the sources.

by Michael Gillan Peckitt April 9, 2025 1
Blind Crime Disability Japan

Yokohama Couple Files Damages Lawsuit: Police Officers Enter Visually Impaired Person’s Home Without Permission

In the appeal trial of a lawsuit where a visually impaired couple residing in Isogo Ward, Yokohama City, is seeking damages from the prefectural police, alleging that police officers entered their home without permission, the prefectural police have newly asserted that “(even without sight) the movements of police officers can be understood by the sounds of their equipment.”

by Michael Gillan Peckitt April 3, 2025 Number of comments0
Aichi Children Crime Japan

Body of Dead High School Girl Shows Many Stab Wounds

Stab wounds are concentrated on the upper body of 16 year old Tokyo high school girl, Waka Kato, who was found dead in a house in Ichinomiya, Aichi Prefecture, two days ago, police sources said Wednesday. According to the police, an autopsy found that Kato died of hemorrhagic shock on Sunday or so. Many stab wounds and slashes on the back of her upper body, notably above the shoulders, suggest the possibility that she was attacked from behind, people familiar with the autopsy results said.

by Michael Gillan Peckitt March 14, 2025 Number of comments0
Crime Disability Intellectual disabilities Japan Podcast

“Blaming Only the Defendant Would Be Too Harsh”: Chiba Father Given Suspended Sentence for Killing Disabled Son [Podcast Episode]

On March 12th, the Chiba District Court delivered a verdict in the trial of a 78-year-old man accused of murdering his younger son, who had a severe intellectual disability, by strangling him in July last year in Chosei Village, Chiba Prefecture. The court sentenced him to three years in prison, suspended for five years (the prosecution had sought a five-year prison term). Presiding Judge Ryuta Asaka noted that “the defendant was in a highly pressured situation, and it would be too harsh to place all the blame on him,” justifying the suspended sentence.

by Michael Gillan Peckitt March 13, 2025 1
Crime Disability Intellectual disabilities Japan

“Blaming Only the Defendant Would Be Too Harsh”: Chiba Father Given Suspended Sentence for Killing Intellectually Disabled Son

On the 12th, the Chiba District Court delivered a verdict in the trial of a 78-year-old man accused of murdering his younger son, who had a severe intellectual disability, by strangling him in July last year in Chosei Village, Chiba Prefecture. The court sentenced him to three years in prison, suspended for five years (the prosecution had sought a five-year prison term). Presiding Judge Ryuta Asaka noted that “the defendant was in a highly pressured situation, and it would be too harsh to place all the blame on him,” justifying the suspended sentence.