TOKYO (TR) – In a desperate bid to curb a soaring number of stalking crimes, Tokyo Metropolitan Police have begun deploying psychological experts directly to police stations to confront accused stalkers, reports Nippon News Network (June 18).
The new initiative, which launched on the 16th, aims to address a glaring loophole in Japan’s Anti-Stalking Act: a lack of compulsory medical or psychiatric treatment for perpetrators. Currently, only about 2 percent of stalkers seek medical help or counseling when advised by police.
Under the new measures, when a suspected stalker refuses treatment, a psychologist will be dispatched to the police station to intervene directly in the presence of officers, attempting to persuade the suspect to seek help before their fixation turns violent.
The stakes are a matter of life and death. In March, a woman was violently murdered in Tokyo’s Ikebukuro district by her ex-boyfriend despite previously consulting police about his stalking. The suspect had outright rejected police suggestions to attend counseling prior to the fatal attack.
According to the National Police Agency, stalking arrests in 2025 hit a record high of 1,546 cases, with overall police consultations regarding stalking surging to nearly 23,000.
While the MPD pushes for early intervention at the borders of the law, private organizations are exposing the terrifying depths of stalker psychology.
Hidekatsu Moriya, who runs the private rehabilitation group Stalker Recovery Support (SRS), uses one-on-one counseling and group work to help perpetrators break their cycle of obsession.
Struggles to accept guilt
One of his clients, a 47-year-old woman going by the pseudonym “Saori,” began relentlessly stalking a man she dated for just two weeks when she was 20. She harassed him with hundreds of calls and emails, banged on his doors, and harbored what she described as “tremendous anger.”
Chillingly, even 27 years after the two-week fling, Saori still struggles to accept her guilt.
“I’m the victim,” she told her counselor during a recent session. “Looking back, I guess we were both at fault. I haven’t grown enough to think of myself as the perpetrator.”
Intense loneliness
Moriya, who admits to being a former stalker himself, understands the intense loneliness and fixation that drive such relentless harassment. To prevent his clients from lashing out violently, he remains on call 24 hours a day and even tracks their locations via GPS with their consent.
“When they are driven by a strong impulse, my involvement gives them peace of mind, which hopefully deters a crime,” Moriya said. Knowing firsthand that verbal warnings and written restraining orders often fail to stop someone consumed by obsession, Moriya advocates for tougher legal revisions to make counseling and GPS tracking mandatory.
Police are urging anyone experiencing stalking to seek shelter at undisclosed locations and immediately contact their local station, call the #9110 consultation line, or dial 110 in emergencies. Authorities also strongly encourage individuals who recognize obsessive or controlling behaviors within themselves to seek professional help before crossing the line into criminality.
