The Handsome Teen Destined for Entertainment—How Kaito Takemae’s Carefree Life Took a Dark Turn

If he didn’t like someone, challenged them to a fight

On the morning of May 14, a group of four youths broke into a house in Kaminokawa Town, Tochigi Prefecture, killing Eiko Tomiyama (69) and her pet dog while seriously injuring her two sons, who lived with her. In connection with the robbery-murder case, a joint investigation team from the Kanagawa Prefectural Police and Tochigi Prefectural Policearrested suspects Kaito Takemae (28) and Miyu Takemae (25) on suspicion of robbery resulting in murder.

The life of suspect Kaito Takemae, believed to have directed the teenage perpetrators, was reportedly marked by violence.

Born and raised in Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture, Takemae initially lived in a municipal housing complex before his family moved into a detached house about ten years ago. A neighbor recalled the circumstances at the time:

“I remember how happy Kaito’s father was about buying his first home. But Kaito was actually his mother’s child from a previous relationship, and I heard he met his stepfather when he was in the lower grades of elementary school. It seemed to be a complicated family situation.”

After his mother’s remarriage, Takemae became the second of three brothers. At one point, the family appeared to have a good relationship, and his stepfather was said to have always looked out for him.

At the time, Takemae was considered very handsome. Neighbors even knew the story that his parents had encouraged him to audition for a talent agency. However, the locally famous “beautiful boy” became increasingly troubled as he entered adolescence and eventually developed a reputation as a delinquent.

The father of one of Takemae’s middle school soccer teammates vividly remembered him:

“Our school had a strong soccer program with dozens of members, but Kaito stood out—for being a troublemaker. He shaved his eyebrows thin, dyed his hair light brown, and if he found someone he didn’t like, he’d challenge them to a one-on-one fight. I also heard he rode motorcycles around town. Whenever there was trouble at school, it was usually Kaito.”

A man who was Takemae’s classmate during their first year of middle school recalled witnessing repeated acts of violence in the classroom:

“I saw him beating people many times. If there was someone he didn’t like, he’d march into that person’s classroom and hit them without mercy. His targets were always quiet, reserved kids. He’d punch them in the stomach or kick them in the backside, but he never hit them in the face. I think that was because the soccer club coach was famous for being strict, so he would strike places that could be hidden by clothing.

He genuinely loved soccer and took club activities seriously. He played as a forward, although he never became a regular starter. On the other hand, he frequently skipped classes. He would obediently submit to people stronger than himself, but toward those weaker than him, he acted in an overbearing and intimidating manner.”

After graduating from middle school, Takemae enrolled in a part-time high school in Kanagawa Prefecture. However, his high school life reportedly fell apart almost immediately, according to one of his classmates.

His neck and arms were covered with flashy traditional Japanese tattoos

“Just two or three months after enrolling, Kaito quit high school, saying, ‘This isn’t interesting at all.’ After that, he seemed to plunge further and further into a delinquent lifestyle.”

After dropping out of high school, suspect Kaito never held a steady job. A local senior acquaintance dismissed his life from his late teens onward as completely directionless.

“I’ve known him since he was 16, and he was incredibly irresponsible. He couldn’t settle into any one job. At one point he worked as a tradesman in the plumbing industry, but that didn’t last either. He kept hopping from one workplace to another, then spent time as a NEET, and nobody had any idea how he was supporting himself.”

The same acquaintance added:

“There was a brief period when I thought he might have turned his life around. At the coming-of-age ceremony, he stood in front of everyone and led the toast, and I remember thinking, ‘Maybe he’s become a decent person after all.'”

However, his personal life continued to be filled with trouble.

In his early twenties, he married for the first time and had a son. But in 2021, he was arrested in connection with an indecent act involving a minor. His marriage collapsed, and he also quit the plumbing job he had been working.

About one month before the current incident, Kaito reportedly visited a restaurant run by an acquaintance shortly before midnight, bringing along an infant and his current wife, suspect Miyu Takemae. A female employee who saw him that night recalled:

“There was no trace left of the lean, muscular, handsome guy he used to be. He looked like an overweight middle-aged man with a beer belly. His neck and arms were completely covered with flashy traditional Japanese tattoos, and he was wearing what appeared to be an expensive Rolex watch. He gave off the impression that he had money. When I asked, ‘What kind of work are you doing these days?’ he just dodged the question and answered vaguely.”

The employee said that shortly before Kaito arrived, she had spoken with his uncle, who expressed deep regret.

“I asked his uncle, ‘How’s Kaito doing these days?’ He looked deeply troubled and said, with great difficulty, ‘Please stop getting involved with Kaito anymore.’ He lamented, ‘I couldn’t keep him on the right path with my own hands.’

It seems he started associating with a bad crowd and drifted away from his uncle. His uncle truly cared for him and worked desperately to help him become a responsible adult, but in the end even he had to give up.”

Perhaps he believed he could make a fortune easily. Rejecting the helping hand that had been extended to him, Kaito allegedly became involved in a robbery linked to an illegal underground job scheme—and, in the process, lost everything.