Man sets fire to apartment due to noisy neighbor
AICHI —
A 36-year-old man was arrested for arson on Sunday after allegedly setting fire to the Toyota City apartment he used to live in before he was evicted last month, police said.
Tetsuya Yamamoto lived in the company-sponsored apartment until last month, when his temporary employment contract expired and he was forced to leave, after which he was without residence. He is accused of entering the first-floor apartment on Saturday using a spare key, and setting fire to it at around 7.30 p.m. The fire spread to two other apartments, destroying some 40 square meters in total. No one was injured in the blaze, police said.
Yamamoto turned himself into police shortly after starting the fire, and was quoted as saying: “The resident above me was noisy, so I thought I’d trouble him in return.”
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tkoind2
yaponsitcom. What the hell?!? Kill someone for bothering you?!? This kind of twisted and sick thinking is becoming all to common in Japan. Instead of learning how to solve problems and speak up, morons are turning to senseless violence.
If you want to hurt someone, do yourself in!
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ronaldk
Well, in the old West I read that a gunslinger once shot a man for snoring, so I guess this is a universal urge.
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thepro
The guy who lives above me is a noisy tool as well
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Weasel
That beats the old way to keep the noise down by having a stereo war between neighbors.
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Disillusioned
Ah, the old spare key trick. I dunno about in Japan, but in Oz the landlords are required by law to change the locks between tennants. Fair enough this was a company sponsored aparto, but still, you have to wonder who has keys to your apartment if the locks have not been changed. We had the locks changed when we bought our aparto and made the body-corp pay for it, which they were not happy about at all. :D
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ratpack
“The resident above me was noisy, so I thought I’d trouble him in return.” ...... Well because you are so honest and told the truth; put out your hand (SMACK SMACK SMACK)....now don't do it again. Oh and you better hang a right when you go out the door....the loony joint is down that way.
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m5c32
Talk about being passive aggressive.
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jianadaren
And the wailing sirens of the fire brigade would be music to his ears~
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Bholder
they all lived in 13 square meters "apartments"?!!? (40 m2 / 3 = 13.3)
he lost even that and ended on the street? i can certainly see where did all that pent up grievance come from
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Tahoochi
Disgruntled temporary employee syndrome. Very common nowadays.
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tarento
Once had a noisy neighbor. All I wanted to do was toss his piano out the window. Seriously, a bit too much grief in this world to have neighbors and countrymen turn on each other. And arson? Guy obviously wasn't thinking about the potential to take out a few lives that way.
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biglittleman
This is why I don't trust most Japanese people. It is always difficult to tell which idiot has a serious screw loose. I am always watching my back. Especially on the train platforms.
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dolphingirl
What happened to the old days... when your neighbour was being noisy and you would go knock on their door and ask them to keep it down?
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ronaldk
Dear Dolphingirl, a fire is less confrontational for today's sensitive personalities.
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dolphingirl
Yeah, that is the problem. Many Japanese are non-confrontational and then feelings of anger or resentment build up inside. If a person faces a problem head on and tries to work out a solution, things don't get to the point where they are burning down their neighbour's apartment.
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Disillusioned
27% of them, to be exact.
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skroknog
Noisy neighbors can be very aggravating. I got to the point where I became pretty aggressive with one, confronting him in the middle of the night.
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hellhound
I should be dead by now! I have received like 100000000000000000 complaints. It is their fault! Why every japanese apartment has such thin walls? It sucks! Pure dumb
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stirfry
wouldn't setting fire to the neighbor have been more effective ?
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space_monkey
The neighbor was probably playing "Firestarter" by Prodigy.
Honestly, I think the line between sanity and sane in Japan is blurry. I have come across and least 50 people who I think were so capable of homicidal mania, while teaching English in Japan.
The ones that always freak me out are the ones that can't talk. I always wonder what is going on in their minds. You can't help but think that they are plotting some kind of sick revenge against those that destroyed their ego.
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Tahoochi
Well I resent those comments! (I have Japanese blood in me)
I think it's safe to say that at least in Japan it's "screws", whereas in "Western" society we're talking "gears"... lol
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zazieblu
“The resident above me was noisy, so I thought I’d trouble him in return.”
Hmm...I am SO glad you were thinking about all the OTHER people that also live in the complex when you started this fire. Jerk!
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BBLeo
There was a similar story published last year. Suspect said: “The resident above me was noisy, so I thought I’d trouble him in return.” And say: You are an idiot! Is he celebrating also 'Chinese New Year?'
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BurakuminDes
We can all only hope this unemployed, psychotic criminal is locked away for the rest of his awful life.
As for noise complaints, some Japanese are so weird about this aren't thay?!? My girlfriend was once beating on my futon at midday on my balcony - for no more than 20 seconds. Got to work to find one of my sad case neighbours had made a formal noise complaint to my company! Didn't have the guts to raise the issue with me...and went straight to my company! You would think people here would learn to get along with their neighbours better considering everyone lives so close together! Curious bunch, hey?!?
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BurakuminDes
LOL! Look, nothing would surprise me anymore, stirfry!
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guest
A favorite pastime involving life in Japan is bothering ones neighbor with noise. They get together in groups and come in noisy waves. Banging shutters, at odd times or placing noisy equipment close to the targeted neighbors house, I have heard many stories. It is all part of the bully culture. They drive each other crazy sometimes.
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LIBERTAS
Fight fire with fire. Didn't they jail some oni-Baba a couple years back for excessive noise?
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goatlover
this guy gets the job done. vote #1 for PM
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bob91343
The problem is that the expectations of privacy and isolation just aren't realistic in the environment of an apartment. When you move in, you need to realize that there will be neighbors who will be aware of your activities and vice versa. Blatant disregard of common courtesy will happen and the best answer is to move.
If you can afford it, get a house where you won't hear neighbors (for the most part) and they won't hear you. If you can't afford it, accept the fact that you won't have the privacy you'd like.
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bobbafett
I understand how the guy feels. The lady above me was very noisy and I complained to her many times. She just said she is not shy about noise and the building manager did not help me. Some people are so selfish. So I stacked my stereo speakers under her floor and let her have it with Slipknot all night one night. She went quiet for a while but then started up again so I threw a bunch of rotten eggs onto her balcony. Have not heard a peep since.
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anderstungtwist
I applaud the arsonist. I hate noisy people, too. This will serve as a useful reminder to the bothersome people of the world and, hopefully, bring us all some peace and quiet.
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Ranger_Miffy
The guy across the narrow alley from me beats his futon every Sunday afternoon. It's a pretty annoying sound, plus the dust he liberates drifts right into my window, so I have to shut it right away (in the warm months). What's up with all this whacking of futons, anyway? I give up.
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