Police said Monday they are searching for a man who took photos of three strangers having an argument before getting into the fight himself. Two were hospitalized, one of whom died, police said.
According to a TV Asahi report, the incident took place at around 4:25 a.m. on Sunday in Konan Ward, Yokohama. Police said that Katsunari Maeda, 25, and a 22-year-old friend had just left a pub when they became involved in an argument with the driver of a car. Witnesses said that a fourth man came along and started filming the quarrel with his smartphone camera. When Maeda told him to stop, the man filming them started attacking them, police quoted witnesses as saying.
Police said the assailant punched and kicked Maeda and his friend, stole their wallets and fled the scene. The driver of the car also took off. Maeda and his friend were taken to hospital where police say Maeda later died.
© Japan Today
17 Comments
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kimuzukashiiiii
Of course, terrible thing to happen but ...
A PUB? Really?
Wakarimasen
hope he is stupid enough to post his film of it on You Tube (or similar) and gets caught.
oikawa
Weird. One guy managed to beat up 2/3 others? How did Mr Maeda die? Hit his head on the ground?
SauloJpn
What a terrible way to end a night out! RIP!
smithinjapan
I can see if someone were filming it or taking pictures so they could give said pics/film to the police, but then the guy jumps in, beats them, and has the gall to rob them as well? I'm with wakarimasen; this kind of filth is the kind of idiot who probably wants to frame his prize on the internet somewhere, and I hope they get him. I hope the driver comes forward and tries to help in getting him as well.
rickyvee
the guy that administered the beating must have been one tough mofo. i mean killing one guy and hospitalizing another? i hope karma comes back to give him his just desserts.
Pixilated
Well, it was nearly 4:30 AM on a Sunday morning, and the two guys were leaving a pub. Had probably been out all Saturday night drinking and were drunk when they left the pub. So one guy beating up two drunk, tired guys isn't really that big of a feat.
AManInJapan
Very vague reporting, but sounds like a set-up by the driver and the other guy...
interuni321
Let's not forget you can kill someone with a single blow to the head, real life is not like the movies... If these guys were very drunk they could also have been sitting ducks for a sucker punch.
602miko
only the video can tell the truth.
badsey3
Foolish youth and everyone has a camera now.
-the smart person would have ended his foolishness right there. At least the driver got away from the foolishness. Story doesn't add up either.
I expect these people all to be on some camera in Yokohama and I'm sure the Japanese police will find every possible camera footage to find these individuals (taking many hours).
Mark Bradley
1 vs 2 and he filmed it first... this sounds very odd. I can only imagine the two were distracted by the driver and also drunk perhaps.
incognito12
Tragically senseless!
Mirai Hayashi
This story is very bizarre! I read Nikkei News to see if they have any more info. Here is what I got:
-the victim and the 22 year old friend where both unemployed. No news sites are reporting the name of the 22 year friend; they just refer to him as his "unemployed friend" LOL
-They got into an argument with a guy driving a kei car.
-Maeda (the victim) confronted the fourth guy who was filming the argument with with hi camera phone, and the situation escalated into a fist fight.
-The camera man stole both men's wallets (containing 1000 JPY) and other possessions and fled the scene.
-the assailant is 175cm average build and about 30 years old and wearing black top.
-No word on the man with car, or the man with the camera phone
My immediate thought is that this sounds like a gang initiation gone wrong. Perhaps the guy in the kei was a gang member trying to get into a gang. The camera man was also a member and filming the argument as proof but went wrong. Just my speculation though.
anonymouscaveman
@mirai i'm really curious how you came up with that speculation.
if I was going to speculate I would keep it simple.
The cameraman thought it was hilarious "2 drunk guys getting in an argument with a third person" and started filming. (it's what i would do.)
Further speculation: the drunk guys got pissed off and physically attacked the cameraman forcing him to defend himself. (again what I would do.)
People tend to assume the worst about others but it could be that the guy knocked out both, not realizing that one would later die, and just left. (This is assuming the cameraman is really a stand up guy.)
The only thing that makes me second guess this is the fact that he robbed the two guys after the fact. If he's a young kid I could see that happening as well.
nath
I agree wit the set up scenario gone wrong.
OrangeXenon54
@anonymouscaveman I don't think this cameraman "accidentally" beat them up and stole their wallets. It makes no sense at all. I agree with Mirai. Something seems kind of fishy.