KANAGAWA (TR) – A fisherman found a corpse inside a suitcase on the banks of the Tamagawa River in Kawasaki City last December.
It turned out that the fully clothed body was that of a Tadayuki Hara, a 46-year-old YouTube livestreamer. The luggage had been weight down with ballast, and Hara’s arms and legs were bound.
Police subsequently launched an investigation, which culminated last month in the arrests the Hara’s former girlfriend, three members of her family and her current boyfriend for murder.
Given Hara’s occupation, the investigation unfolded unconventionally, which caused police to abandon typical methods.
Murder
On June 14, police served warrants for murder to Mai Nishitaka, 32, her father Masahiro, 53, mother Miho, 51, brother Shogo, 34, and Nishitaka’s current boyfriend, 39-year-old Shuhei Iwaki.
At the time of the incident, Nishitaka and Iwaki were living in an apartment in Ota Ward, Tokyo. Around the night of December 15, the victim entered the residence. However, his whereabouts became unknown thereafter.
According to police, the five worked together to strangle Hara inside the dwelling between the night of December 15 and early the following day.
An examination of security camera footage taken near the house in Ota Ward showed Nishitaka’s father, her brother and current boyfriend carrying a suitcase.
Nishitaka’s mother denies the allegations. The other four generally admit to the crime, police said.
Police added that the five suspects conspired to carry out the crime. Police first arrested the five suspects on suspicion of abandoning a corpse in late May.
Livestreamer
The victim and Nishitaka had been attempting to end their relationship going back to September. According to Fuji News Network (May 27), Hara owed Nishitaka about 800,000 yen over his use of her bank and credit cards.
Hara began his career as a livestreamer under the handle “Yuiga” about one decade ago. He became known for attacking those who held views he opposed.
Police arrested Hara last September after allegedly directed abusive language at Nishitaka while he visted Nagoya to make a clip.
Hara had developed a fanbase. After he disappeared last December, many followers began theorizing on online sites regarding what had happened to him. In some cases innocent people were accused of the crimes, sources told the Asahi Shimbun.
The result was investigators abandoning interviews with Hara’s associates and instead focusing on security camera footage and other concrete leads.
In one instance, a person used a smartphone to livestream from a police station. Another livestreamed a discussion with a police officer after offering to provide information on the case.
Fearing that information about the investigation would leak out, police halted interviews with other livestreamers.
“We adopted a very unconventional approach, but it is a reality that anyone can disseminate information nowadays,” the senior investigator told the Asahi Shimbun. “Similar situations are bound to take place in the future.”
