Photo: YOUTUBE
crime

20-year-old man faces charges over using flamethrower in park

31 Comments

Papers were sent to prosecutors on Monday on a 20-year-old man who used a flamethrower at a park in Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture.

According to police, the suspect, who works as a temporary employee, faces misdemeanour charges. He is suspected of using his flamethrower last Aug 12 and Sept 24 in the park, Fuji TV reported. The flame-emitting weapon is 50 cms long and when the trigger is pulled, is capable of setting objects alight at a range of two meters.

Police learned of the incidents after the man filmed himself using the flamethrower and posting the footage on a video-sharing website.

He was quoted by police as saying, “I wanted a lot of people to see it online. I thought I might be able to sell the flamethrower.”

Police said he told them he made the flamethrower himself, using materials he bought at a home center.

© Japan Today

©2024 GPlusMedia Inc.

31 Comments
Login to comment

I hope this guy gets an engineering degree and has a nice constructive life. This is the kind of guy that will live to an old age tinkering, tinkering, and more happy tinkering all his life. Good luck to you pal! Don't waste away from this minor setback. You're only 20 years old and have, at least, 60 more years of fun ahead of you!

0 ( +0 / -0 )

similar blowtorches can be purchased at DIY stores for weed control 

The report of this I saw on telly pointed out that it is possible to buy blowtorches etc., legally, but also pointed out that such blowtorches do not shoot flames 2 metres and also have a safety feature that prevents them being used unless they're pointed downwards; they can be used for burning weeds, but not as a weapon.

They also pointed out that the fuel appears to be fed through to the nozzle via the little loop of green tubing at the top of the handle: one tiny leak, a breeze blowing in the wrong direction for a split-second, and the user could set himself and anyone standing near him on fire.

And the clown wanted to sell these things?

0 ( +0 / -0 )

He should get hired for his Engineering skills, though sadly now with a Criminal record, that may not happen so easily.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

you should see me burning all the weeds around my house. only quarter of a meter though.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

some park cleaning duty fits this act of misguidedness.

Well he certainly knows how to melt snow...

0 ( +0 / -0 )

This boy needs credit, he was just feeling excited at his age, and I think he didn’t want to hurt any one.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Ok. It only fires about 2 meters. I knife is only as dangerous as far as your arm can extend. I still wouldn’t want to see anyone openly carry either in a park. Could have been kids there.

A word in his ear and some park cleaning duty fits this act of misguidedness.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

I figured it was a guy being punished for using a flame to melt snow and here it is a guy getting ready to fight The Thing.

(come on, somebody get the movie reference...)

1 ( +1 / -0 )

DAaronToday 12:07 am JST

Another over-reaction for something that is essentially benign.

Not really, his fault was using it in a park, not a bright idea where there are people wandering about and children playing. If he had tested it at home on the weeds (or cleared snow in winter) there would be no charges.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

Another over-reaction for something that is essentially benign.

0 ( +2 / -2 )

I can think of using it to clear the ice and snow on my driveway.

4 ( +4 / -0 )

Can't see how building this is a crime, since it is more of a glorified BBQ starter than a weapon, but I can understand how he'd be charged for using it in a public park. Charge him, give him a slap on the wrist and some fines, a bit of community service, then get him to work on building something that can help people.

3 ( +3 / -0 )

Jay C Victor

He needs guidance as much as you do man. Talk about drawing the wrong conclusion...nobody said anything about white supremacy, Nazis, or terrorists.

Neither would they want his device that works for 2 meters lol!

4 ( +4 / -0 )

1/23/2018 6:40 a.m. EST SELL a flamethrower? There would have been many takers in the States: white supremacists, neo-Nazis, and extremist terrorist cells. This young man needs tome guidance. Serious guidance.

-5 ( +1 / -6 )

That thing strapped to it at the front with the slightly bent pipe looks a plumber's torch. It's basically the same as those bbq lighting torches you can buy anywhere. They use the same gas cassettes as the tabletop single burners people use for cooking nabe etc. at the table.

My guess is that the plumbers torch is being used on very low as a pilot light-type lighter and that the other two tanks further to the rear have the actual fuel and a propellant.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

thepersoniamnow

i hear you mate. And agree totally that he should just get a warning. But some folk in the park could have got quite a scare thinking he was some loon on the loose.

And who really knows what his motives were?

4 ( +4 / -0 )

I hope he gets off with a warning and a job offer. Pretty talented kid IMO

3 ( +3 / -0 )

Yeah, 2 meters doesn’t sound very threatening. He should have hooked his flame thrower up to a leaf blower to get done real distance.

1 ( +2 / -1 )

I feel, wether if he's innocent or guilty of a crime, that the judicial system might make an example out of him.

2 ( +2 / -0 )

I’m not sure the “weapon” itself is a crime, as similar blowtorches can be purchased at DIY stores for weed control and fire starting, and flamethrowers are not classified as a weapon in Japan (or the US).

It seems the only “misdemeanor” committed was using it at a public park. Most of which have laws banning use of open flame.

Only 2 meters?

The larger black canister is probably a liquid fuel or propane tank for the pilot flame.

The fuel propellant would be the smaller silver canister in front of the fuel tank. A small CO2 dry shot like that is usually used in beverage servers and such.

Military use flamethrowers use 20litre pressurized tanks and are charged with probably hundreds of times more PSIs than any home use air compressor can produce.

Threre is also the issue of concocting a fuel and pilot lamp that won’t extinguish under high pressure. As jet engine mechanics say, “keeping a candle lit in a hurricane.”

1 ( +1 / -0 )

He's a young inventor, Japan needs more of these people!

14 ( +14 / -0 )

So if he filmed himself on his own property, instead of at a park, would the police still arrest him?

6 ( +6 / -0 )

Does not sound like he was trying to hurt anyone.

9 ( +10 / -1 )

Where's the video

5 ( +6 / -1 )

Only 2 meters?

-1 ( +3 / -4 )

Two meters not exactly a great distance, a bottle of fuel can be thrown further. Does seem a nice piece of work, but at a public space a park? Nobody hurt, no malice involved just a bad bad judgment call.

20 ( +20 / -0 )

Maybeperhapsyes

How it be “wrong on every level” if he did nothing evil, just a immature mistake. Since he’s 20 and was not trying to hurt anyone and was just trying to make a cool video...seems a tad vicious to arrest him.

Now he has been referred to prosecutors meaning he WILL be found guilty. Hopefully the judge has some mercy and encourages him to go to engineering school instead of punishing him for no reason.

20 ( +22 / -2 )

What he did was wrong on every level but you have to admit the kid has some skills. That's a pretty cool looking device he's made there. Surely he has a bit of engineering knowledge that can be put to good use?

14 ( +16 / -2 )

アホやねん。。。。why the hell post it on the internet ? Why not just use the flame thrower at the koban and save everybody some time? Same difference...

-6 ( +4 / -10 )

Login to leave a comment

Facebook users

Use your Facebook account to login or register with JapanToday. By doing so, you will also receive an email inviting you to receive our news alerts.

Facebook Connect

Login with your JapanToday account

User registration

Articles, Offers & Useful Resources

A mix of what's trending on our other sites