[Kabukicho’s “Street of Evil”]: On-the-Ground Report from a Corner of the Love Hotel District Rumored to See “Incidents Almost Every Day”

It’s the talk of the town among Kabukicho residents

In Shinjuku’s Kabukicho—the “city that never sleeps”—there is reportedly a section known among residents as the “Street of Evil.” Since the start of this year, numerous incidents have occurred there, and witnesses have repeatedly seen police and ambulances rushing to the scene. We visited this notorious area—which in recent years has even come to be called the “Tōyoko Kids’ Dorm”—to investigate the situation firsthand.

The street where these incidents are occurring is home to love hotels known as “X,” “Y,” and “Z” (pseudonyms; “Z” has been closed since April for renovations). The three hotels are sometimes collectively referred to as “XYZ.”Operating in a corner of Kabukicho, this cluster of three hotels is popular among men and women engaged in compensated dating and “sugar daddy” arrangements due to their low rates and proximity to a prostitution district teeming with streetwalkers. It is said that incidents such as assaults, arson, and attempted murder have been occurring frequently in the immediate vicinity.

Starting around last year, “Tōyoko Kids”—young people who had been barred from internet cafes and similar establishments—began coming and going to sleep there, which is why the area is called the “Tōyoko Dormitory.” It’s said that incidents began to occur more frequently around the same time, and the situation has reportedly worsened even further since this past April, when the Tōyoko Kids were driven out of Cine City Plaza.

Incidents such as a man brandishing a metal bat, gang beatings among the group, and drug abuse—which prompt police and ambulances to rush to the scene—have become a daily occurrence. Local residents I spoke with attest to this, yet such incidents are rarely reported in the media.

A man who has lived in the Kabukichō area for nearly 10 years nodded and said , “Ah, that’s the street with the love hotels,” adding, “There are a lot of young people around there these days.”

“The streetwalkers from Okubo Park have moved to Kabukichō’s love hotel district, and the standard pattern now is for them to pick up clients around here and head straight to a nearby hotel.X, Y, and Z all charge in the high 3,000-yen range for a short stay and around 6,000 yen for an overnight stay—the lowest rates in Kabukichō. I’ve heard that aside from prostitution, young people with no home or money are using them as lodging. Apparently, the ‘Tōyoko Kids’ often stay there.”

“Blood-Soaked Images” Uploaded to TikTok

Various rumors had been circulating about the three love hotels. The Kabukicho resident mentioned earlier whispered to me, “It looks like plainclothes police officers are patrolling the area. Apparently, there are people abusing illegal drugs, so they’re conducting stop-and-frisk searches and drug tests.”

“Since the start of this year, in addition to streetwalkers, their clients, and the ‘Tōyoko Kids,’ shady-looking thugs have started gathering on ‘Devil’s Street,’ so I try to stay away. Rumor has it they’re involved in the sale of illegal drugs,” the resident added.

There was also reportedly a double suicide involving a young couple at Y. I was able to speak with a female acquaintance of the deceased man.

“They were friends I met about four years ago. The two of them went into Y to film a TikTok video. A video circulated showing the man lying on top of the woman, both covered in blood on the bed. The police and paramedics arrived and reportedly tried to resuscitate them multiple times with an AED, but both of them died.”

Why are incidents so frequent on “Devil’s Alley”? “It’s easy to come and go,” says the female acquaintance mentioned earlier.

“In the center of Kabukicho, police and volunteers patrol to warn minors who are hanging out there. They’re especially vigilant around love hotels and other lodging facilities, where ‘To-Yoko Kids’ tend to gather, and the hotels themselves don’t let in young people who appear to be minors. However, X, Y, and Z have lax age verification, and it seems they let ‘Tōyoko Kids’ in as well. Word quickly spread that ‘even minors can get in there,’” says the woman mentioned earlier.

In recent years, Kabukicho has made headlines for its high suicide rate. Near a building where jumpings have occurred frequently lies the so-called “Devil’s Alley,” and in April of this year, two young people reportedly jumped from X—

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