[Exclusive] Arrested Swingers Bar Manager Fights Unprecedented Trial

About 20 investigators were inside the restaurant.

“That day, there were about eight customers in the store. Around 5:30 PM, two or so investigators came in and shouted ‘Don’t move,’ and then about 20 more officers entered the store. The customers who were just watching were questioned for about 30 minutes and then sent home, but the customers who were arrested along with me were taken to the police station. After leaving the store around 7:00 PM, there were already media cameras waiting for us. The flash was intense, and I was so surprised by the number of people that I couldn’t help but smile, and when the news footage aired, I was mocked online for grinning.”

This is what Isayama Tatsuya said. He was managing a swingers bar called “Nocturne” in Kinshicho, Tokyo, but was arrested on October 2 on suspicion of aiding and abetting public obscenity. Police raided the bar’s floor area where a man in his 30s and a woman in her 40s were naked and performing handjob acts. Isayama was arrested along with the two.

Isayama was indicted on October 23, and his first trial was held on December 2 at the Tokyo District Court. In an unprecedented move, he denied the charges. Why did he act this way? We spoke with Isayama (all quotes below are his words).

“I originally graduated from university and worked as a full-time employee in the medical field. Most recently, I worked at a pharmaceutical company, but to be honest, I got bored. I had always wanted to work in customer service. I worked as a therapist in a women’s escort service, which in a way is customer service, and I thought I was suited for it. But there was no significant growth for me, and I was struggling. In that situation, I thought a fun thing I could do was to open a swingers bar. I had personally visited these places before. In November 2023, I decided to start looking for a property, and on March 20 this year, I opened ‘Nocturne’ in Kinshicho.”

It is said that it takes time for a swingers bar to attract a consistent number of customers. The business is prone to suspicion, and one-time customers don’t often just drop in. However, Nocturne managed to attract many customers from the very beginning.

“I did quite a bit of promotion on social media. It became popular through word-of-mouth among ‘secret account’ men and women. It’s said it takes about two years for customers to come, but we got a lot of people right from the start. So, we were noticeable.

We had around 2,000 members, and our total sales before the raid were about 12.5 million yen. The members include not only people who visited the store but also those who registered online. The actual number of customers who came is probably around 1,500. There were young people and people in their 50s, but the majority were in their 30s.

The usual price was 7,000 yen, but we had a ‘young discount’ on weekdays for those in their early 20s, which was 5,000 yen. Women were free. We also ran a campaign where women who posted on bulletin boards and came to the store received Amazon gift cards. Just the cost of the Amazon gift cards was about 300,000 yen a month, and since the store offered all-you-can-drink alcohol, I think it was priced quite cheaply.

I didn’t want to just make money; I wanted to provide a fun space. I had fun at swingers bars myself, and I thought lower prices would bring in more customers, which in turn would attract even more. So, I kept the prices low. People often said, ‘You must be making a lot of money,’ but that wasn’t the case.”

 

What’s the difference between being naked at a friend’s house?

Was it because the bar stood out that it became a target? “Nocturne” was raided just over six months after opening, and Isayama was arrested.

In previous cases where swingers bars were raided, the owners or managers were typically indicted with a summary prosecution and fined, which had become the “norm.” However, Isayama was not fined, but instead, he was indicted, and a public trial was scheduled. Why did this unusual situation occur?

“I’m not sure why I was indicted. Perhaps when I questioned the ‘publicness’ of the obscenity charge with the prosecutor, it was interpreted as not showing remorse… I think it’s possible that it was made an example of. New swingers bars open every year, so maybe they used my bar as an example to show that they were going to enforce stricter regulations. I didn’t agree with it from the beginning, but I thought if it ended with a summary prosecution, I’d have to accept it. But since I was indicted, I decided to fight the parts I didn’t agree with in court.”

What he argues is that, on the day of the incident, he was at the reception desk greeting the police officers who were entering the store, so he didn’t witness the arrested couple’s obscene acts, meaning that he shouldn’t be found guilty of “aiding and abetting public obscenity.” Additionally, he claims that a police collaborator disguised as a customer entered the store that day, and suggests that they may have illegally provoked the crime by engaging in acts like stripping. His most strongly contested point is regarding the “publicness” of the alleged obscenity.

“I wanted to dispute the publicness because the line is very vague. For example, if you’re drinking with friends at someone’s house, and someone gets drunk and takes their clothes off, or if multiple people engage in sexual acts, that wouldn’t constitute public obscenity. I confirmed this with the prosecutor. So why is it considered public obscenity when it happens in a swingers bar?

Our store had a floor area where everyone could drink and chat, and the playroom was clearly separated, with curtains as partitions. You couldn’t see into it from the floor area.

The prosecutor told me, ‘Swingers bars are places where an unspecified number of people come and go.’ However, in our store, people had to register online and agree to the terms of service. We always checked IDs, and we also turned people away when we judged it was necessary. The store had locks on two doors to prevent people from entering without permission. In other words, only people who agreed to the terms of service and whose identity was confirmed could enter. So why was it considered public obscenity? I couldn’t understand that.”

 

“I wish people would be more tolerant.”

Every time incidents involving swingers bars or orgy parties are raided, there is a repeated debate: “Can public obscenity occur between consenting individuals?” and “Is this a crime when there is no victim?”

The term “public obscenity” is defined briefly in the criminal code, stating that “Anyone who commits obscene acts publicly shall be punished with imprisonment for not more than six months, a fine of not more than 300,000 yen, or detention or a minor fine.” The phrase “publicly” is vague, and there are strong criticisms that it leads to arbitrary investigations by law enforcement.

Isayama reflects on this issue.

“I don’t think the chances are zero, but the reality is that in Japan, if you are indicted, you are almost always found guilty. Even with little chance of winning, if I win the case, I can continue operating my business proudly. I believe that I am the only one in Japan challenging this.”

He adds, 

“It’s the police’s job to arrest if something seems suspicious, so I don’t have complaints about that, but leaking the information to the media and having them report on it — I think that’s a bit questionable. Maybe it’s meant as social punishment, but I feel like the media also picks up on it because it’s interesting. That, too, doesn’t sit well with me.”

“Nocturne” reopened on December 20, under a new name and with a renewed approach. Isayama said, “From now on, we plan to fix what was wrong before and operate in a way that no one can complain.”

“I think causing trouble for others is wrong, but there are many people who express themselves quietly without causing harm to anyone. It seems strange to me that such places are raided when there is no victim. It’s a difficult balance, but I hope people can become more tolerant of sexual minorities and sexual expression. Because it’s a sensitive issue, I believe that places like swingers bars also serve an important role.”

The trial is still ongoing. Will Isayama’s argument be heard?