Japan - Miyazawa family of 4 murdered, Setagaya, Tokyo, 30 Dec 2000 #3

[FacelessPodcast]

Am I correct in recalling that the money that *was* taken was laying out in the open next to the computer, and the money that *wasn't* taken was in an envelope on a shelf?

The other way around, I believe.

 

[FacelessPodcast]

Interesting possibility! The money issue is one that sticks with me the most. If he's going to take any, why not take it all?

Another theory I've considered is he took only the smaller denomination bills. I know Japan was a cash society then. But to a lesser extent, so too was America at this time, and having larger denomination bills stood out. Even today. More so with a younger person. I know that at around the suspected age of the killer, if I were carrying larger denomination bills it would definitely stand out. Especially with my parents.

The amount he took wasn’t huge. In the year 2000, what it is the amount you have to declare? 10,000+? He would’ve been well below that. Assuming he would go to the length of mentioning it.

You can see videos, albeit it brief, on the Yokota website showing the immigration / landing process. From my conversations with USAF family members etc, it does not sound particularly involved. A kid getting on a plane with a few grand on him might raise an eyebrow. But that’s assuming they would search for it / find it / the killer would declare it. Far more likely he keeps it in his pocket / bag / book, lest the question of provenance arises.

 

[BatataPoha]

Interesting possibility! The money issue is one that sticks with me the most. If he's going to take any, why not take it all?

Another theory I've considered is he took only the smaller denomination bills. I know Japan was a cash society then. But to a lesser extent, so too was America at this time, and having larger denomination bills stood out. Even today. More so with a younger person. I know that at around the suspected age of the killer, if I were carrying larger denomination bills it would definitely stand out. Especially with my parents.

My souvenir theory solves your problem in the sense that the money he took was only a symbolic token and he wasn’t gonna waste any of his time looking for more. The stuff he took qualitatively served its purpose.

I dunno about higher denominations considering Japanese Yen is a weak currency and its a developed country, so I assume that higher denomination bills might not be that out of place.

 

[SteveL]

The amount he took wasn’t huge. In the year 2000, what it is the amount you have to declare? 10,000+? He would’ve been well below that. Assuming he would go to the length of mentioning it.

You can see videos, albeit it brief, on the Yokota website showing the immigration / landing process. From my conversations with USAF family members etc, it does not sound particularly involved. A kid getting on a plane with a few grand on him might raise an eyebrow. But that’s assuming they would search for it / find it / the killer would declare it. Far more likely he keeps it in his pocket / bag / book, lest the question of provenance arises.

Nic, thank you sincerely for your expertise and reply!

I seem to recall the customs process being more involved in the 90's. I know I was randomly searched at least once. I'm wondering if the killer was concerned about the money drawing attention to him, and wanted to avoid the possibility while exiting the country. I wonder if having a large sum of cash on him was something he was concerned would draw attention on him, in one fashion or another.

The other theory I have is the killer needed to exchange the Yen for dollars, or even some other form of currency. As he was leaving the country, and possibly anticipating never returning, he may have wanted to do so. I know many financial institutions limit the dollar amount you can exchange for non-customers. If the killer was younger, he probably didn't have a bank account, as this was very uncommon for young people at the time. Also, exchanging a large sum may have drawn unwanted attention to him. Suppose a family member noticed?

 

[BatataPoha]

Have the police ever confirmed if Yasuko was on some medication like sleeping pills, anti depressants or like cough medicine on that fateful night?

That might explain why she could not react to Mikio’s scuffle downstairs. It might also explain that she might have reacted to the attacks in a more sluggish manner.

We know that Nina is the first one out of the attic coz she runs to get the First aid kit. Maybe Yasuko realises this a bit late, and runs after her to get her back. This might explain why both of them went towards the killer when he was doing his stuff in the kitchen instead of running away or staying in the attic and alert the neighbours.

 

[FlowersInBloom]

Suppose a family member noticed?

Just on this comment, not directly related to the money suspicion, but in the case of a high school student with a family… I actually do think someone in his family noticed what he did and got him out of Japan quickly… he had cuts to both sides of his hands I believe, hadn’t been back home the night of the murder, and as you say… had wads of cash in an amount a teenager likely wouldn’t have had. Not to mention he had bloody shoes (unless he managed to completely clean them before leaving) and entire outfit being left behind.
I think he was noticed… just not by anyone that would report him…
JMO.

 

[cenazoic]

would consider this to be far more usual than anyone actively seeking out sanitary pads that weren’t even readily available to the killer.

Half-joking speculation: he did spent some time in the bathroom. What do you do while you’re sitting there? Read, look through the cabinets within reach, oh, look, pads under the sink.

Though I have a completely unfounded suspicion that the Japanese could be given a courtesy copy list of the names and place of assignment of the people the US brings in

When I was stationed at Kadena (Okinawa) we flew in commercial (JAL) and didn’t need passports. ( I didn’t get a passport until after I got out of the AF.)

While I don’t know whether the military provided incoming servicemember info to the local government, it seems the information would have been available from the airlines, if the person in question flew in or out commercially.

 

[FacelessPodcast]

An article on Setsuko. What an amazing person.

「大谷さんの活躍で元気づけられます」…93歳を迎えた「世田谷一家殺害事件」遺族が明かす「同郷の世界的アスリート」への思い - ライブドアニュース

 

[lilykaluva]

An article on Setsuko. What an amazing person.

「大谷さんの活躍で元気づけられます」…93歳を迎えた「世田谷一家殺害事件」遺族が明かす「同郷の世界的アスリート」への思い - ライブドアニュース

She seems like such a lovely human being. Really hope there will be justice for her, or at least that she will know who the culprit is.

Edit: so glad to see you here again, Faceless! Hope you have been doing okay.

 

[Charlot123]

The money could also have been taken as some form of souvenir

I think something else must have been.
Sometimes I wonder if Jizo is not a signature of a peculiar kind.

 

[Charlot123]

I think that the numbers are referencing the order of who was killed. Rei was 1st, for example.

eta: jinx, Faceless!!

Something about numbers. If you view Jizo as having some significance, Rei is 6. But maybe, it is just the killer's signature.

Could there be two earlier murders?
If we are going to Mojave desert, there, perhaps?

Or, if indeed the perp used to kill animals, processing from a small one to a dog to humans?

Or maybe the person is obsessed with certain numbers? Something about 6 in general?

What was the total amount of money that he took?

P.S. BTW, I do take the posts of that animal-torturer on pet-hating boards seriously. There are some observations about the habits of the animals that sound realistic.

There was one situation in our state that never got solved. Cats mutilated in Thurston County in 2018. There may be DNA. Much as there are pet haters everywhere, I wonder if that person on moving back to the US (if there) had to revert to animals? For some reason, that string of animal killings stuck in memory.

A serial cat killer is responsible for feline deaths in Thurston County, police suspect

Mutilated cats have been discovered in Olympia, Lacey, and Tumwater. Police believe the deaths could all be the work of one person and are urging people to keep pets indoors.

www.seattletimes.com

I wonder if it makes sense for Tokyo MPD to make a call to Olympia, WA? There may be human witnesses, too, although I don't know the details.

 

[Cryptic]

While I don’t know whether the military provided incoming servicemember info to the local government, it seems the information would have been available from the airlines, if the person in question flew in or out commercially.

I think that is a very good observation. Courtesy copy, or no courtesy copy, there would still need to be a civilian passenger manifest. Though, as you stated, the manifest, would be kept by the airlines and be made available on request.

I wonder if.....

Countries routinely make airlines fax them copies of passenger manifests in advance for immigration and customs preparation and security checks. These manifests would then be archived somewhere. If the archived manifests included names and say, identity documents, they would then know who the US servicemen were. For example:

1.) Joe Blow DOB XXXXX ID US passport.
2.) Ivan Tradekov DOB XXXXX ID Russian passport.
3.) Mary Kay DOB XXXX ID: US military ID -or- US driver license (no passport equates to US servicemen).

 

[TokyoSleuth]

A bit like @Incoherent, the recent weather in Japan has led to me staying inside and doing a deep dive on this and other cases.

What's really sad is that this case is not actually that unique. There are a huge number of cases in Japan involving brutal attacks with knives (often sushi knives) as well as abductions on seemingly random targets. Of those that are solved, many were deemed crimes of "pleasure" and opportunity where the killer did what they did for sheer enjoyment and simply happened to choose those targets. Actually just in the last 5 years there have been multiple cases of individuals going on random stabbing sprees with a knife, one of these at an elementary school bus stop. It's another reason I lean towards the idea the killer is local. The Chief's assertion that the nature of the crimes makes it unlikely the killer is 'Culturally Japanese' as stated on the podcast, just simply does not line up with the history in Japan of vicious knife attacks.

I feel like in Japan it is true that crime is low when it comes to random muggings and theft/burglary, but when someone decides they do want to cause harm, they do it full on.

Something that is really sad is that up until 2005, there was a statute of limitations on murder of 15 years. This means that there are a huge number of unsolved murders and disappearances in Japan which are officially closed, and even if the killer came forward today, they would not be prosecuted. This was extended to 20 years in 2005, and eventually abolished in 2010. So one shine of hope in this case is that should the killer be identified, the family will be able to get justice unlike so many other families.

 

[BatataPoha]

A bit like @Incoherent, the recent weather in Japan has led to me staying inside and doing a deep dive on this and other cases.

What's really sad is that this case is not actually that unique. There are a huge number of cases in Japan involving brutal attacks with knives (often sushi knives) as well as abductions on seemingly random targets. Of those that are solved, many were deemed crimes of "pleasure" and opportunity where the killer did what they did for sheer enjoyment and simply happened to choose those targets. Actually just in the last 5 years there have been multiple cases of individuals going on random stabbing sprees with a knife, one of these at an elementary school bus stop. It's another reason I lean towards the idea the killer is local. The Chief's assertion that the nature of the crimes makes it unlikely the killer is 'Culturally Japanese' as stated on the podcast, just simply does not line up with the history in Japan of vicious knife attacks.

I feel like in Japan it is true that crime is low when it comes to random muggings and theft/burglary, but when someone decides they do want to cause harm, they do it full on.

Something that is really sad is that up until 2005, there was a statute of limitations on murder of 15 years. This means that there are a huge number of unsolved murders and disappearances in Japan which are officially closed, and even if the killer came forward today, they would not be prosecuted. This was extended to 20 years in 2005, and eventually abolished in 2010. So one shine of hope in this case is that should the killer be identified, the family will be able to get justice unlike so many other families.

Mostly agreed except for one small thing that bugs me which is the whole shenanigans of leaving behind everything including clothes and hip bags and stuff. Is it dumb luck or that he knew he wouldn’t be caught despite leaving everything behind?

Most unsolved cases remain unsolved despite the killer not leaving everything on him behind. So what motivated him to do this thing specifically still remains a huge mystery to me.

If that part can be adequately explained away, then I think it becomes a work of a random local quite easily.

 

[Charlot123]

Has there been any mention anywhere of Yasuko possibly being hard of hearing?

I was asking the same question about Haruko. I don’t know who in the other house was located closer to the partition, but I always wondered if it could be Haruko and perhaps, not hearing anything could have a simple explanation.

It is not inconceivable to ask whether Rei’s lack of speech could be due to congenital hearing loss, as opposed to developmental condition. I know that peripheral hearing loss has to be ruled out first in the cases of speech delay.

Here is the data of hearing loss for the US.

Quick Statistics About Hearing, Balance, & Dizziness

Statistics on hearing, ear infections, and deafness among both adults and children in the U.S.

www.nidcd.nih.gov

In Japan, the prevalence of hearing loss is the same, but there is a worse situation with hearing devices. I assume 20 + years ago, the situation was worse.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0385814622002279

So, your question is reasonable. I would also ask, where was Rei evaluated for his speech delay? I just thought that if Rei, indeed, was the intended target, there may be one more place where he could have been seen by the perpetrator. The contact could have been of a different type, and if one of the workers was hearing-impaired, that could explain some aloof behavior afterwards.

 

[Hausos]

A bit like @Incoherent, the recent weather in Japan has led to me staying inside and doing a deep dive on this and other cases.

What's really sad is that this case is not actually that unique. There are a huge number of cases in Japan involving brutal attacks with knives (often sushi knives) as well as abductions on seemingly random targets. Of those that are solved, many were deemed crimes of "pleasure" and opportunity where the killer did what they did for sheer enjoyment and simply happened to choose those targets. Actually just in the last 5 years there have been multiple cases of individuals going on random stabbing sprees with a knife, one of these at an elementary school bus stop. It's another reason I lean towards the idea the killer is local. The Chief's assertion that the nature of the crimes makes it unlikely the killer is 'Culturally Japanese' as stated on the podcast, just simply does not line up with the history in Japan of vicious knife attacks.

I feel like in Japan it is true that crime is low when it comes to random muggings and theft/burglary, but when someone decides they do want to cause harm, they do it full on.

Something that is really sad is that up until 2005, there was a statute of limitations on murder of 15 years. This means that there are a huge number of unsolved murders and disappearances in Japan which are officially closed, and even if the killer came forward today, they would not be prosecuted. This was extended to 20 years in 2005, and eventually abolished in 2010. So one shine of hope in this case is that should the killer be identified, the family will be able to get justice unlike so many other families.

I agree with you too. I think the killer was 100% Japanese. Young, haughty. Culturally Japanese. His fashion sense, the strangling/stabbing, drinking lots of barley tea, and the traces of the meal his feces contained. Seems just so Japanese to me. I believe he stayed for a couple hours after the murders because he was injured. Because it was late at night, he had no reason to think someone would come into the home looking for the Miyazawas. Since it was a residential area, he could easily leave during the night without being detected.

The sloppiness of the crime is also reminiscent of a lot of Japanese crimes during that time period. Reminiscent of a Japanese ヤンキー, or "DQN" youth.

I think it's also more likely that a Japanese person would commit the murders and be more familiar with the area, because why would a military brat seek some random family in a random residential area to murder UNLESS he had a prior connection with the family?

Crime in Japan is rare indeed. I doubt this teen or young adult put much thought into the crime.

 

[BatataPoha]

Half-joking speculation: he did spent some time in the bathroom. What do you do while you’re sitting there? Read, look through the cabinets within reach, oh, look, pads under the sink.

This is a strong possibility. Unfortunately we can never quite get out of the grip of luck or happenstance in this case.

My only doubt here is the fact that if his injuries are as severe as we assume, then he would need something to tie it around to stop the blood flow and allow stuff to clot. Its far more easier to tie his hankies around instead of the less pliable saitary pads. He could have easily disinfected the hankies as well, so why he chose sanitary pads over the hankies in his hip bag is certainly interesting.

The killer might not have been very rational or might have had to wash the wound to get rid of any debris so ofcourse he might have had to go to the bathroom and then may have stumbed upon the pads. That is ofcourse a strong possibility.

 

[BatataPoha]

I agree with you too. I think the killer was 100% Japanese. Young, haughty. Culturally Japanese. His fashion sense, the strangling/stabbing, drinking lots of barley tea, and the traces of the meal his feces contained. Seems just so Japanese to me. I believe he stayed for a couple hours after the murders because he was injured. Because it was late at night, he had no reason to think someone would come into the home looking for the Miyazawas. Since it was a residential area, he could easily leave during the night without being detected.

As I have said earlier, he could very well be a rando Japanese instead of a rando military brat.

The only problems are all the stuff he left behind, and his exit from the house becomes even more unclear. He couldn’t have left in the middle of the night if he was planning to use public transport, so presumably he also used a car or something to get away. But if he was gonna use a car, why did he need to drop behind all of his stuff? I don’t think it was pre planned, so why drop stuff like the hip bag?

Its a major sticking point in my view.

 

[FlowersInBloom]

As I have said earlier, he could very well be a rando Japanese instead of a rando military brat.

The only problems are all the stuff he left behind, and his exit from the house becomes even more unclear. He couldn’t have left in the middle of the night if he was planning to use public transport, so presumably he also used a car or something to get away. But if he was gonna use a car, why did he need to drop behind all of his stuff? I don’t think it was pre planned, so why drop stuff like the hip bag?

Its a major sticking point in my view.

Right, like… if you’re so sure you’re going to be under the cover of darkness for your escape, or you’re local and can make it back home undetected, why leave absolutely everything behind besides your shoes, including your bag? Why go to the trouble of all of that if you’re just around the corner?
To me, it says one of a few things…

1. He had to travel back to where he lived and would likely be seen by some or several people on the way, so he dumped it all in favour of a cleaner appearance to make it back.
2. He was confident that he wouldn’t be found even with the mountain of evidence he left, so he changed and just left it all there. This aligns more with the leaving Japan soon after theory.
3. He didn’t plan for the murder to be as brutal and bloody as it was so had no choice as everything was splashed with or soaked in blood and could leave a trail.

I’m sure there are more points other people could add here that I haven’t thought about…

Since he had a bag, and it wasn’t that small either from what I’ve seen, even if he was going to change out of his clothes… why not pack them in your bag and take them? Why leave them all there? I refer back to my 3 points when I think about this question.

Any other ideas…?

 

[TokyoSleuth]

As I have said earlier, he could very well be a rando Japanese instead of a rando military brat.

The only problems are all the stuff he left behind, and his exit from the house becomes even more unclear. He couldn’t have left in the middle of the night if he was planning to use public transport, so presumably he also used a car or something to get away. But if he was gonna use a car, why did he need to drop behind all of his stuff? I don’t think it was pre planned, so why drop stuff like the hip bag?

Its a major sticking point in my view.

Yeah I do agree with you. The leaving behind of items, as well as the reported manner of how they were left (I say reported because I don't think the folding of the clothes has been officially confirmed) is a puzzling one. I think the use of public transport is probably out, both for the reason you state and that there would have been CCTV at the stations. Though as with the Ibaraki Supermarket murder, Japanese police have been known to sit on CCTV of known suspects without revealing it if the subjects were under 18. I don't think that is the case here though.

My only musing on this is that the mental state of someone who would break into a house and brutally kill a whole family is clearly not a while deck of cards. The killer clearly wasn't thinking 'Forensically' so might have thought nothing of just leaving stuff behind. JMO

It's a sticking point for me too, but then the same question would be there whether he is local or from the base.