CHIBA (TR) – Chiba Prefectural Police have arrested a 32-year-old man of no known occupation who is believed to have solicited more than 50 teenage girls for prostitution via social-networking services, reports NHK (Nov. 30).
According to police, Hiroyuki Furutachi, who has been sent to prosecutors, engaged in sex acts deemed obscene with six high school girls in exchange for payments over a roughly three-year period ending in March after becoming acquainted with them via the smartphone applications Line and Instagram.
During the sessions, the suspect filmed the activities. He then attempted to extort each of the girls, who are from Chiba, Kanagawa, Saitama, Gifu, Toyama and Aomori prefectures, saying that he would release the footage publicly on the internet if they did not engage in sex again with him.
Furutachi, who has been accused of violating the anti-child prostitution and pornography law and attempted coercion, told police during questioning, “I’ll talk at the trial.”
During the investigation, police examined smartphones belonging to the suspect that revealed he engaged in sex with a total of 56 girls from 30 administrative districts nationwide.
