Man Jailed for Faking Incurable Disease, Scamming Girlfriend of 2.5 Million Dollars

The man arrested on suspicion of fraud is said to have told a lie to the police.

He told the police, “It is a natural thing in the water business world to extract money from customers. I was not aware that it was wrong.

On January 11, the Machida Police Station of the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department arrested Masaru Sawada, 28, of Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture, on suspicion of fraud. Sawada is a so-called “private arrest-type YouTuber” who catches ordinary people he deems to have taken voyeuristic photos of him and turns them over to the police. He calls himself “Super Dominator” on the Internet.

Many of the videos by these “private arrest-style YouTubers” are considered problematic because of their extreme content, such as when they knock down a suspected molester or thief on a station platform. The same is true of Sawada, who has been criticized for his methods, claiming that he will not tolerate vile crimes against women.

According to his own statements, he has “arrested” about 150 ordinary people so far, and he is a well-known YouTube star with more than 300 videos and nearly 100,000 subscribers to his channel.

30 Million Yen Needed for Medical Treatment

The incident that led to his arrest occurred in October 2008.

He told Ms. A, with whom he was dating at the time, that he was suffering from adult Still’s disease, which is designated as an intractable disease by the Japanese government. Ms. A gave the suspect approximately 2.5 million yen in cash.

However, Sawada did not show any symptoms of an incurable disease. When she was unable to contact him again, Ms. A consulted the police in July 2009. The police arrested Sawada on the grounds that he had cheated her out of her money.

Sawada admitted the crime, saying, “There is no doubt about it. On the other hand, as mentioned at the beginning of this article, he also justified his actions by stating that “it is natural to withdraw money from customers” and “I was not aware of any wrongdoing. At the scene of the crime scene, he was eyeing the photographer of this magazine with a sharp gaze.

Sawada used to work at a boys’ bar. He became friendly with Ms. A, who came to the bar as a customer, and they developed a relationship. The suspect probably had the perception that Ms. A was a customer to ‘extract money’ from him. On YouTube, he said, “I will not tolerate crimes targeting women,” but he was cheating his girlfriend out of her money.

In recent years, there has been a string of troubles involving privately arrested YouTubers. Last November, a man in his 40s was arrested on suspicion of defamation after he exposed an innocent woman online whom he deemed to be reselling tickets at a high price. About a week later, a well-known YouTuber in his 30s was caught on suspicion of violating the Methamphetamine Control Law.

In the first place, the authority to make arrests is basically limited to police officers and prosecutors. In addition, private arrest-style YouTubers are not well corroborated, relying on information on the Internet. Innocent people often have their faces exposed, and this has been criticized as ‘overkill.

The videos that are made public become “digital tattoos” that cannot be easily erased. Innocent people’s faces continue to be exposed under the guise of ‘private arrests. The police are stepping up their crackdown.

Was the “Super Dominator” Sawada really distributing the videos out of a sense of justice, or was it just a way to make money, like when he worked at the boys’ bar? …… Sawada is not the only suspect in question. The morals of the privately arrested YouTubers are being questioned.