OSAKA (TR) – Osaka Prefectural Police have arrested a 26-year-old for allegedly kidnapping three school girls. After the four took large quantities of over-the-counter drugs, one of the girls died, reports the Mainichi Shimbun (Sept. 5).
On September 4, police accused Hikaru Kosaka, of no known occupation, of taking the three teenage girls, in middle and high school, to his home in the Tachibanacho area of Higashiosaka City two days before, reports the Mainichi Shimbun (Sept. 5).
Kosaka reportedly stated, “I invited the three [girls] to my house. I thought I had their parents’ permission.”
Kosaka told police that he and three girls took large amounts of over-the-counter drugs on the night of the September 2. Thereafter, one high school girl ingested about 30 to 40 tablets of cough suppressant.
At around 1:00 p.m. on September 3, the high school girl, who is believed to have been in a relationship with Kosaka, noticed that her cheeks and hands were cold while lying on a futon in the suspect’s residence. Kosaka then called emergency services. She was later confirmed dead at a hospital.
The results of an autopsy revealed that the cause of death was acute drug poisoning due to an overdose, police said.
“We shoplifted cough suppressants and took large amounts together,” Kosaka told police. Drug packages were found in the suspect’s home, and it is believed that the four of them took a total of about 80 tablets.
There were no abnormalities in the physical condition of the other two school girls or the suspect. Police are currently questioning the suspects about how the high school girl died.
Gurishita
This practice of taking large amounts of cough suppressants seems to be widespread among young boys and girls who gather the Dotonbori area of Osaka City.
They are known as “Gurishita,” which combines the name of candy brand Glico and the word shita (down). The moniker is a reference to the popular meeting place below a Glico advertisement in Dotonbori.
When TV Asahi visited the area on September 5, a reporter was able to talk to a man who said he knew someone who called himself “Hikaru,” the same name as the suspect.
“He came here under the name Hikaru,” the man says. “He may not be a sensible person, but he’s a pretty solid guy.”
Did you know the girl who died?
“She was very kind and took good care of me. It might have been my fault. I’m sorry,” the says the man, who was in touch with her via Instagram.
It is not known how Kosaka and the high school girl started dating.
