crime

'Chainsaw Man' gets suspended sentence for threat posted on YouTube

17 Comments

A 27-year-old man who threatened an employee of a parcel delivery company with a chainsaw and uploaded the video of it on YouTube last December was found guilty and handed an 18-month sentence suspended for three years by the Tsu District Court in Mie Prefecture on Wednesday.

According to the court, Kazuhiro Hasegawa, dubbed "Chainsaw Man" by the media, entered the office of a Yamato Transport Co delivery center in Iga City, Mie Prefecture, at 5:45 a.m. on Dec 3, and swung the chainsaw around, threatening an employee, Fuji TV reported. Hasegawa filmed the incident with his smartphone and then posted it on his YouTube channel, Hasegawa Kazuaki 8003TV.

After his arrest, Hasegawa told police he was upset that parcel he ordered had not been redelivered to his residence the night before after he was out earlier in the evening the first time the deliveryman came.

During the incident, which went on for about 10 minutes, Hasegawa threatened an employee while bellowing that he “hurry up and get my package and bring me the person in charge.” After he got his package, Hasegawa actually paid the delivery fee and then left.

During the trial, prosecutors said Hasegawa received 440,000 yen in revenue from YouTube after his went viral, and demanded a prison sentence of 18 months.

In handing down his ruling, Judge Masanori Takahashi said: “The crime was committed out of a self-centered motive and given that the incident was filmed, the suspect obviously planned it.”

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17 Comments
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TIJ! Suspended sentence for a planned, carried out, and videod crime. Unbelievable! AND he profits from it!!

-1 ( +1 / -2 )

It reminds me of the time the wannabe gangster(s) bullied the combini staff a few years back. What sentence did he get?

0 ( +0 / -0 )

WTF!! What does it take to get arrested here for cryin out loud!!

He was found guilty of a crime. Now I haven't looked into whether or not he was actually arrested or not, but I'm going to go out on a limb here, and say that he almost definitely was arrested at some point in the past for this crime.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

WTF!! What does it take to get arrested here for cryin out loud!!

CLEARLY this is way more than enough to do some time

Seriously WRONG ruling!!

1 ( +1 / -0 )

The longer I stay in Japan, the more I fail to see what's the point of having any laws at all.

2 ( +3 / -1 )

I doubt one can make 440,000 yen out of 16,000 views on YOUTUBE, just saying....

0 ( +1 / -1 )

EVERY LITTLE THING DONE - is a judgement call. I would consider a threat from a degenerate wielding a chainsaw as to be something out of the ordinary even here.

2 ( +2 / -0 )

TBH the court's decision is reasonable. A suspended criminal sentence as no actual physical harm done in the end but still on record, and the employees can now take this further in civil court and sue for damages. No point dishing out maximum punitive type sentences for every little thing done

2 ( +4 / -2 )

Hasegawa received 440,000 yen in revenue from YouTube after his went viral,

Let's hope there won't be any copycats. Revenue from a crime-video should be forbidden.

3 ( +4 / -1 )

After he got his package, Hasegawa actually paid the delivery fee and then left.

only in Japan

-1 ( +1 / -2 )

This loon is an outright nutter! He should not only have received prison time, he should also be receiving anger management counselling! He should also be made to pay all the funds he received from YouTube to the staff he threatened. You threaten and traumatise people with a flipping chainsaw and get a slap on the wrist for it? You have to be pooping me!

0 ( +4 / -4 )

Just another man-child.

2 ( +4 / -2 )

In an ideal world, he'd have got a short sentence in a prison where they sew mailbags.

(yes I know they don't do that in Japanese prisons, and doubt that mailbags are even used any more)

-3 ( +1 / -4 )

Suspended sentence says it's OK to terrorize others. Shameful.

3 ( +8 / -5 )

Fat, abusive creep, didn't get his Lolita porn package delivered on time, so goes ape with a chainsaw, what a loser, should be ashamed to upload what he did.

6 ( +8 / -2 )

I would have thought this video was against youtube's content rules. He shouldn't have received 1 yen let alone 440,000 yen.

0 ( +2 / -2 )

I assume there's a law in Japan that prevents criminals from profiting from their crimes, such as from the YouTube revenue.

0 ( +2 / -2 )

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