Chiba man admits to assaulting over 100 young girls

Tuesday 16th June, 07:12 AM JST

CHIBA —

A 26 year-old man was arrested Monday for indecent assault after he muffled the mouth of a 9-year-old girl and fondled her inappropriately, police said. According to police, the suspect, identified as Sakura City resident Akihiro Saito, spotted the girl on her way home from school in Chiba City on May 22. He grabbed her from behind, covered her mouth and then fondled her before fleeing.

According to police, Saito admits to the charges, saying, “I did it because I was frustrated.” He was quoted as saying that he had committed similar acts over 100 times, mainly to elementary-aged girls.

In the Chiba City area, similar incidents had been occurring with some frequency, and just as police had created a likeness of the offender and begun an investigation, Saito was brought in for questioning.

News reports

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Latest 15 of 35 Total Comments Show All

Altria at 01:10 PM JST - 16th June

It sickens me to see grown men ogling over comic books containing rape and abuse of young girl. **I see them on the trains every day **and just wanna slap the twisted perverts.

Do you live in Saitama?
PepinGalarga at 01:16 PM JST - 16th June

How did this guy get caught? This story fails to mention any details. Some secret ninja vigilant force? Police sure ain't got time to be chasin after these kind of creeps.
Tahoochi at 01:25 PM JST - 16th June

In the US, you can now check the internet to see where convicted sexual offenders live (exact address and mug shot), and of course, see if they live anywhere close to you. It's pretty sad that it would to come to that, but maybe Japan could use something similar... and even still, it wouldn't do anything to prevent 1st time offenders, but it would be better than nothing.

Disillusioned: You see men on the train everyday with comic books containing rape and abuse? I really don't understand your basis for such a statement. You never cease to amaze me.
womanforwomen at 01:32 PM JST - 16th June

The only country where even beggars and homeless have access to free porn. What more can you expect to hear? This is the first world, 26 year old is not busy with his career, or his family life and has a lot of free time. He is frustrated. He has a lot of time to read Manga (I am a big MANGA fan, but not a fan of porn).

I heard a discussion on the local radio that the public toilets in the parks could be a reason for increased crime!!!!!!!! Someone enlighten me on this. What would happen if the current school girls uniforms were changed to something more modest and comfortable. What would happen to the Jporn industry and the pervs?
pawatan at 01:53 PM JST - 16th June

What would happen if the current school girls uniforms were changed to something more modest and comfortable. What would happen to the Jporn industry and the pervs?

So are you blaming the girls for being attractive to perverts? That's what you are saying when you say uniforms need to be more modest to discourage perverts. Seems quite retrograde to me.

I don't believe there is a big social problem. It's a country of nearly 150 million. There's bad seeds in every population. You can just punish them when you find them, educate your children how to be safe, and hope they'll never need to worry about bad people -- which in all likelihood, they won't.
joseba at 01:54 PM JST - 16th June

This sounds fishy to me... Assaulting over 100 girls before being arrested?

It's like the police had too many cases to deal with, and they charge all of them to a persuadable person.
gogogo at 01:55 PM JST - 16th June

Ok... he should be taken to a doctor and "repaired" so that he wont do this anymore. There is a procedure to do this, California was the first state to use it as a punishment for sex offenders:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chemical_castration
steen at 02:00 PM JST - 16th June

100? How did he get this far? Most of you are complaining about the man - he's a bad bloke, but why wasn't he stopped (arrested) at just a dozen or so?
TokyoHustla at 02:27 PM JST - 16th June

Is this another forced confession? 100 seems unlikely. Maybe they're just trying to pin all unsolved cases on one guy.
soldave at 03:01 PM JST - 16th June

The story says he was quoted as saying this, but then never quotes him saying he's assaulted over 100 young girls. Not saying he hasn't, but might be worth checking out what exactly has or hasn't been said as we know how Kyodo News/JT can get a little ahead of the game sometimes with their stories.
nandakandamanda at 03:25 PM JST - 16th June

Lot of readers posting exactly the same opinion. Doesn't anyone read other people's posts any more? Or doesn't it matter?

Nothing new about the crime, but as namabiru4me says above, maybe now is the time for everyone to educate their children on how to deal with sick men who have never been taught the necessity of self control, or learnt how to take care of their bodily urges.
dishdash at 05:02 PM JST - 16th June

I personally think if you really want to fix this - get young people better socialised like in the West where (and maybe someone can correct me here of whether it occurs in Japan or not as I dont have kids) kids go to dances and things like that. A lot of this here has to do with adults not being well adjusted. Lets fix the root of the problem. I am a big fan of Japan having lived there for such a long time but this type of thing needs to really stop. In that regard I wish Japan would just open its mind and not just its door to the newest gadgets or toys. SIGH.
kirakira25 at 05:16 PM JST - 16th June

Yet again, my argument against letting my elementary age kids walk to school alone (or in groups) stands up against the parents and teachers constantly berating me for taking them to school and not teaching them "independence".

As for why this thing happens at all - well, I think that's complicated, and of course it happens all over the western world not just within Japan, but unlike the western world I think Japan could make a major leap forward by not trivialising child sexual abuse in manga comics and using young girls and school uniforms as sex objects. Wherever you go - outside Pachinko parlours, conbini's, even childrens characters like Pricure you see this depicted and it almost sends the message that this is socially acceptable.

As a Mum of a daughter attending elementary school I would also like to see thorough checks done on teachers backgrounds, as in the UK and US. her current homeroom teacher really gives me the creeps.
BBLeo at 07:35 PM JST - 16th June

ARE YOU KIDDING ME: ...Assaulting over 100 girls before being arrested? This is all going back to police force and their investigatorS. Please make sure that he seeS' shrink before he get suspended sentence. 'IS ACCUSSED SEEK ANIMAL???'
usaexpat at 11:15 PM JST - 16th June

He was frustrated? More like he's a pedophile although that certainly may cause frustration given that it's illegal and such. Glad this guy will be off the streets.