Man gets 4 1/2 years over threats to 'Kuroko's Basketball' manga author

The Tokyo District Court on Thursday sentenced a man to 4 1/2 years in prison for sending threatening letters to convenience store chains and other establishments linked to Tadatoshi Fujimaki's "Kuroko’s Basketball" manga series.

Hirofumi Watanabe, 36, a temp worker, was arrested last December. He had pleaded guilty to the charges.

In handing down the sentence, the presiding judge said Watanabe had shown no remorse and had tried to disrupt businesses because he was jealous of Fujimaki, TBS reported.

The court heard that on Oct 12, 2012, a plastic container was left on the second floor in the gymnasium of Tokyo’s Jochi University (Sophia University), the alma mater of Fujimaki. Inside the container was a liquid capable of releasing poisonous hydrogen sulphide. Attached was a note which read, “I hate Fujimaki.”

Several students at the university reported seeing a man dressed all in black and carrying a container around the time of the incident. Shortly after, a message was posted on a message board site claiming responsibility for the crime. The post was traced back to an Internet cafe in Chiba Prefecture where security camera footage showed a man fitting the description of university witnesses, but revealed nothing otherwise distinguishing.

Then, on Oct 15, a threatening letter was delivered to Fujimaki’s former high school which also reportedly contained a “white powder.” By the end of the month, similar letters were sent to broadcasters in Tokyo and Osaka that aired the anime version of "Kuroko no Basuke." In each, incident the letters were postmarked from outside the destination’s prefecture which made it impossible for authorities to track accurately.

"Kuroko no Basuke" is a sports themed manga that centers around a young student named Tetsuya Kuroko who aims to dominate in the world of high school basketball and defeat his former teammates who now play for rival schools.

Although the manga has inspired some independently made "yaoi" (romantic fan fiction), there isn’t really any notably controversial subject matter in the story.

The series became hugely popular since beginning in Weekly Shonen Jump in December 2008. Currently, 25 volumes have been published selling 23 million copies.

In the following months after the first threats were made in 2012, further threatening letters were sent out to various events related to the "Kuroko no Basuke" series in Tokyo and Chiba causing numerous cancellations or exclusions of the sports manga in the case of larger events.

In each case, the letters were accompanied by a potentially poisonous substance or the threat of one. The wording of the letters seemed to alternate between Kanto and Kansai dialects but followed a pattern that suggested this was the work of a single person. Experts felt that the culprit was likely in their 30s or early 40s due to their knowledge of the internet and otaku culture.

On Jan 17, 2013, an “End of Attack Declaration” for event venues was posted on a message board. However, in the following April more threats were made against events in Shiga and Kobe.

For a few months, things went relatively quiet against "Kuroko no Basuke", but started up again in full force in October. On Oct 15, major video and CD rental chain Tsutaya along with several convenience stores received intimidating letters demanding the removal of all "Kuroko no Basuke" related items. Tsutaya and 7-Eleven both complied to the demands and pulled products from their shelves.

On Nov 4, police warned Sophia University of a threatening message referring to a day they held a festival as “X-Day” but nothing unusual occurred. However, later that month, a wafer snack from a convenience store in Urayasu City, Chiba, was found to contain traces of toxic nicotine.

Then, on Dec 15, 2013, Watanabe was arrested on suspicion of sending the letters and charged with forcible obstruction of business. According to police, he was picked up while putting letters into mail boxes in Shibuya, Tokyo. When caught, Watanabe reportedly admitted “Game's over. I lost” and “I was working alone.”

Furthermore, according to police, inside Watanabe’s backpack were 20 threatening letters to organizers of a high school basketball tournament and Comiket demanding cancellations.

The authorities said that they were able to estimate the suspect’s appearance by the security footage of convenience stores even though he was wearing a mask and gloves. They added he was very careful not to leave any fingerprints as well.

Although arrested in Tokyo, Watanabe is a resident of Osaka. He was accused of sending over 400 letters of intimidation to businesses, events, and the media, causing several cancellations and 7-Eleven to recall goods from 1,500 of their stores.

When asked why he held a grudge against Fujimaki and/or "Kuroko no Basuke", Watanabe reportedly said that he never met the manga artist but “was jealous of his success.” This was also alluded to in a letter to the Mainichi Shimbun which read, “Fujimaki who lived a blessed life, and I who have never experienced anyone’s love.”

Watanabe testified that he was abused by bullies and his parents during childhood. He said that he wanted to kill himself before making the threats, and would try to do so again when he is released from prison. “That way, society can rest assured that I won’t do anything stupid again.”

Upon learning about Fujimaki’s successful career and life compared to his, he thought that “if I somehow managed to harass and depress him, I could drag him into my suicide journey.”

© Japan Today