Assault on Female Employee of Yakuza Driver’s Shocking Pre-Crime Behavior

At an internet cafe, a man threatened a female employee with a cutter knife, barricaded himself in a private room for five hours and demanded, “Take off your clothes!” He is alleged to have caused injuries while attempting sexual assault.

In June ’22, a standoff occurred in Kawagoe City, Saitama Prefecture. In the first trial, defendant Koji Nagakubo (44) was sentenced to 17 years in prison for charges including abduction, confinement, and causing injury. The appeal trial began on July 1st at the Tokyo High Court, but the defense’s request for psychiatric evaluation was denied, and the trial concluded the same day.

“Defendant Nagakubo, then 22 years old, held a female part-time worker hostage and barricaded himself in a private room at a net cafe around 10 p.m. on June 21st, ’22. Even when asked about the hostage’s safety through the intercom by the police, he reportedly shouted angrily, ‘Shut up, you bastards!’ Approximately five hours after the incident began, he was arrested on the spot after responding to police persuasion.

During questioning, he mentioned feeling disillusioned with life and expressing a desire to return to prison. Nagakubo had previously engaged in a standoff incident in Toyokawa City, Aichi Prefecture, in November ’12. He had barricaded himself in a Toyokawa Credit Union branch, holding customers and staff hostage for an extended period, demanding the resignation of then-Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda,” stated a national newspaper judiciary reporter.

‘FRIDAY’ extensively covered Nagakubo’s Toyokawa standoff incident in its December 14, ’12 issue. They want to re-examine the detailed history of Nagakubo’s falsehoods and troubles (some details have been modified).

 

“Abandoned by my parents.”

“While waiting in line at the ATM, there was a suspicious man wandering around near the counter.”

In an incident in Toyokawa City, a female customer present at the scene recounted:

On November 22nd, ’12, Defendant Nagakubo barricaded himself in the Toyokawa Credit Union Kurako Branch with a survival knife. He held five customers and staff hostage for 13 hours. In the early morning, Aichi Prefectural Police’s Special Investigation Unit stormed the premises, arrested him in the act, and safely rescued the hostages.

Nagakubo’s behavior had been a concern from the outset. A national newspaper’s social affairs reporter who covered the incident.

 

“Defendant Nagakubo seemed to have moved between various rehabilitation facilities across different regions, reportedly stating, ‘I was abandoned by my parents at a young age’ and ‘We were poor.’ Perhaps influenced by such information, commentators on wide shows at the time speculated that his family environment could have been the cause of these incidents.”

However, the truth was different. When our magazine reporter actually visited Nagakubo’s hometown of Hokuto City, Yamanashi Prefecture, it became clear that his statements were lies. His family home, though somewhat aged, was a large two-story house with a spacious yard. Local residents had this to say:

“Koji-kun was born in that house and lived there until he graduated from school. He was a completely normal child with nothing unusual about him. His parents seemed serious, and his father worked at a local factory. Koji-kun was the eldest of four siblings, and his grandfather also lived with them.’’

Defendant Nagakubo enrolled in an agricultural high school. Looking at his graduation album, there is a playful caption saying “My Porsche,” alongside a photo of Nagakubo operating farm machinery. It appears he was also a member of the soft tennis club, and from photos at the time, he gives off the impression of being a completely normal child with nothing unusual about him as described by local residents.

The turning point seems to have come immediately after he enrolled in a local university. At the time, an acquaintance of Nagakubo’s said the following.

“After getting pregnant at 19 and marrying a college classmate, he dropped out and lived in an apartment for newlyweds, but they soon divorced.”

After that, he grew distant from local friends. However, it seems his ‘habitual lying’ persisted,” continued the acquaintance.

“About 10 years ago, when we met in town after the Toyokawa incident, he was boasting about being a yakuza driver. If true, it should have been a topic of discussion locally, but I haven’t heard anything from others.”

Defendant Nagakubo, who had been involved in theft and fraud incidents several years before the Toyokawa incident, served sentences and was released repeatedly. Despite being released in April ’22, he immediately caused another standoff incident.

The appellate court’s verdict is expected to be delivered on August 16th.