A high school teacher has been arrested after he took upskirt shots of a girl at a train station in Funabashi, Chiba Prefecture, police said Wednesday.
The suspect, Hirokatsu Murakami, a 29-year-old teacher at Yachiyo Shoin High School, is suspected of taking upskirt shots of a 16-year-old high school student with his smartphone while on an escalator at JR Nishi Funabashi Station at around 6 p.m. on Tuesday, Fuji TV reported.
Murakami has admitted to the charge and was quoted by police that he got sexually turned on by taking upskirt photos.
© Japan Today
57 Comments
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clueless
Well done Einstein…Blow your career taking photos of something you can find all over the internet.
Wakarimasen
Usual suspect doing usual stupid stuff. although for those of us who think that fascination with youth is a Japan only phenomenon, I was piqued to read this http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-3300990/Introducing-Instagram-s-newest-style-stars-Fashionable-four-year-old-twins-gain-21-000-dedicated-followers-thanks-superb-sartorial-skills.html
Aly Rustom
Don't worry murakami: plenty of like-minded fellows in prison for you to associate yourself with
Meiyouwenti
Will this pervert face immediate dismissal? I doubt it. He will most likely receive a reprimand and/or 3 to 6 month-pay cut, and then return to class as if nothing happened.
HongoTAFEinmate
Get 'em while their young, and lock them up (the teachers).
descendent
Why risk your livelihood for something so trivial? In terms of the risk vs. reward, the potential payoff is pretty damn low.
Skeeter27
Why do little girls turn on older men? It's sick! When I say "little" I mean underage. If a girl age 16 turns you on then you are in need of serious psychological help. If you are 18 looking at a 16 year old that's normal. But over 30?!?!?!?! Get help!!!!!
TheGodfather
Nothing further to add!!
Jalapeno
Skeeter - How do you know the girl didn't look 18, which is still a high schooler?
zones2surf
Of course, none of this had anything to do at all with all the objectification of Japanese schoolgirls in uniforms in anime, manga, and the like. Of course not. Because, of course, that's just art that has no victims.
Alex Einz
Skeeter27 16 aint a small girl, especially since in Japan age of consent is 13 , and nothing wrong with 29years old dating someone under 18 if they wish so ( US prudishness laws dont apply here ) , that said I would never get what excites someone to take underskirt photo from the back... you might as well just put a skirt on and photo yourself or something.. The teacher should be fired just for sheer stupidity
TheGodfather
They are called MORALS... The dictionary definition being: "standards for good or bad character and behavior"
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/morals
Alex Einz
Thegofather.. the name is irrelevant , US strange morals dont apply here
LFRAgain
No, he will very likely be fired from his board of education. This is a criminal case, and in no reality would a teacher convicted of criminal charges like this be allowed to keep his or her job.
A BOE that I previously worked in would publish and distribute a monthly bulletin to all staff listing any and all policy/law infractions committed by employees of that BOE over the previous month(s), including what school they worked at, precisely what their infraction was, and precisely what their ultimate penalty was.
In all cases that I saw over a 1-year period where something of this nature occurred, the staffer/instructor/administrator lost his or her job. Every single time.
And that's precisely what will justly happen to this imbecile, Hirokatsu Murakami.
TheGodfather
No, they don't because...
Japan is a law-abiding country with a low crime-rate!!! :-)
albaleo
And morality laws are a good thing?
Nobusaki
Smh.
As an aspiring teacher this news is very disappointing. As teachers we are given a special responsibility of ensuring that the students we teach are able to learn, grow and fulfill their potential. We are trusted by the public to make sure that the students are safe and not endanger of any kind of assault or misdemeanor while we are present.
This just saddens me to think that a teacher would throw away his career like that just because of his temptation.
TheGodfather
You are expected to have MORALS...The dictionary definition being: "standards for good or bad character and behavior" over and above what is written in the law.
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/morals
timeon
Parasite Single, the schools have rules for the length of the skirt, but of course the students ignore them. And I wouldn't like to live a country where the government decides what clothes the citizens should wear; I can move to Afghanistan for that
ZainichiOnna
Skeeter27
I'll never understand this JK business in Japan nor defend it, but can you actually tell the difference between a 16 years old and a 18 years old ? Or even 20? There is absolutely no difference, except the school uniform, which is the problem here.
Sexualization of the school uniform is the real issue. Even the most plain girl would look like a goddess to these perverts because of the uniform. Make these highschool girls wear normal clothes and no one here would pay attention to them. But Japan has difficulties to change its old habitudes and traditions so I guess we're still going to have to read this kind of articles for a while.
Jumin Rhee
Skeeter27:
"Why do little girls turn on older men? It's sick! When I say "little" I mean underage. If a girl age 16 turns you on then you are in need of serious psychological help. If you are 18 looking at a 16 year old that's normal. But over 30?!?!?!?! Get help!!!!!"
Hugh Heffner has been getting turned on by women a mere fraction of his age. Perhaps he needs help too. On a sidebar, as a global society, puberty was the age that people were available for marriage. Obviously, in most of the world we decided to create laws to give girls more of a chance to grow up and later to get an education. Some still feel the primal urges. Others stopped looking because they either weren't attracted in the first place as they were growing up or learnt to stop looking.
Aaron Lloyd Brummett
Skeeter27:
"Why do little girls turn on older men?"
Watch your grammar! I understand both what you were "trying to say" and "what you actually just said"!
grammerly is free to use online!
nath
What is it about a piece of cloth that gets these perverts doing such things? It is such a shame that if it is not a teacher it is a cop doing these acts.
Many bars clubs like image club have a menu where you can choose your weird fetish. OL on a train with a mask with handcuffs all for Y17,000. Much cheaper than buggering up your career, family etc.
TheGodfather
Bingo! The school uniform is "sexualized" because it makes it easier for the perverts to identify those girls who are UNDER-AGE when they are on the way to and from school...
Disillusioned
Ah, Japain! You've done it again! I've seen losers taking photos up girl's skirts more than half a dozen times in Tokyo and Chiba. The first few times I made a point of stopping them and even called the train guards, but I found myself in more trouble than the offenders because I am a foreigner. I was actually told by the police not to interfere with Japanese culture after a I nabbed one loser taking up-skirt photos of one of my students at a train station. He was interrogated for 20 minutes and let go. I was detained for more than two hours for being an interfering gaijin. After that, I usually just give them a nudge and a dirty look, which is enough to send the cowardly losers running from the station. One time I walked up to the loser and asked him to show me the photo he took. His expression was priceless and has been imprinted into my memory. As was his scream and hasty exit from the station. These pathetic losers are very common in Japan and due to my residency status [foreigner] I cannot give them the 'service' they deserve.
skinnee
This headline is actually ready to go every time the JapanToday staff hit Ctrl-V. They just need to fill in "teacher" or "police officer."
M3M3M3
Just to make it absolutely clear and to save anyone from ending up in prison or getting deported, the age of consent in Japan is 18....18 (not 13!).
Yes, you're right that the penal code sets a national minimum baseline which makes it a criminal offence under 13, but there are other local laws in each prefecture that have raised the age of consent to 18 (with a few exceptions).
Laguna
Why the obsession with age here? Even if the victim were 80, it is a type of sexual assault and should be treated that way.
cardsfan5
@Laguna: My thoughts exactly. Who cares what poster x says? What the man did is clearly illegal, regardless of the girl's age.
This has nothing to do with prudish American laws.
azukaya
These men are like boys, its simply what is happening.
TheGodfather
Now we're getting near the truth!! ;-)
theFu
BTW, taking an upskirt photo is legal in the USA when there isn't an expectation of privacy (like in a bathroom).
http://www.cnn.com/2014/03/05/us/massachusetts-upskirt-photography/
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/sep/19/texas-court-upholds-right-to-take-upskirt-photos
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/10/10/upskirt-photos-legal-dc_n_5966406.html
http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/feb/06/oregon-judge-rules-man-upskirt-photos-girl-not-crime
I can understand why Japan has different laws and rather than change school uniforms, having a law to slightly protect skirt-wearing women, girls and boys (yes, boys wear skirts too) doesn't seem like a bad idea.
Paul England
That would only work if the bathroom is a public one. Generally once you are in some type of private property, whatever they say goes. On the street... in public though, you are fair game, so dress appropriately. (
Worth noting though, in at least the first two articles regarding the US (didn't read them all), the defendant was not jamming a phone up a passer-by's skirt. I'm also not sure what the guy in Japan was doing, but my guess is it was a bit more obviously malicious. As a candid street photographer I see the upside in setting a hard rule about expectations in public - cover your junk if you're in public - by definition, it is not private. If such a law existed, photo journalism and street art would cease to exist. However, once people start circumventing nature (IE, phones/mirrors on the shoes and whatnot) you're entering the assault zone and should be seen as such.
lostrune2
If the object is cute
clueless
It's all too creepy this school uniform business. Switch on the TV on any given day and you will be adults dressed as student in various circumstances. "hentai" doesn'T even come close.
Wc626
Doesn't mean it is "right" or okay. No specific legislation (letter of the law) has been drafted in many states. Rather, it's the spirit of the law which should guarantee some expectation of privacy.
Besides, I'm sure any HS Teacher in the US would prob be fired from his position if caught snapping up-skirt photos of 16 yr old girl. "Its Legal" you say . . . But again the spirit of the law coupled with vicarious liability forces any reasonable school district to fire that teacher.
Skeeter27
To answer a few of you... 18 is still a minor in Japan.
If a girl is in a school uniform chances are she is under age.
Sorry about the grammar error.....
Wc626
Heh, wonder what the parents of his female pupils and school board think of him now. He should be fired big time.
kitzrow
Totally wrong by this school teacher and he will probably lose his job. But the skirts of many school girls are so short, wonder if this craze for the past 15 years will ever end. Even in the dead of winter when it is very cold, short skirts prevail. The school I used to work at did not allow short skirts in school, but many of the students just pulled them up on their way home. Guess they want to fit in!
Skeeter27
"Why do little girls turn on older men? It's sick! When I say "little" I mean underage. If a girl age 16 turns you on then you are in need of serious psychological help. If you are 18 looking at a 16 year old that's normal. But over 30?!?!?!?! Get help!!!!!"
Hugh Heffner has been getting turned on by women a mere fraction of his age. Perhaps he needs help too. On a sidebar, as a global society, puberty was the age that people were available for marriage. Obviously, in most of the world we decided to create laws to give girls more of a chance to grow up and later to get an education. Some still feel the primal urges. Others stopped looking because they either weren't attracted in the first place as they were growing up or learnt to stop looking.
You are right! But the girls are legal adults and they are responsible for their own actions. We are talking about a man who was a teacher over 30 years old. A guy that tried to take a photo the skirt of an unknowing victim. And minor
Big difference
cardsfan5
Because they.are underage? What you say makes no sense. Unless they are wearing a school uniform, can you really tell the difference between a 16 year old and an 18 year old?
Numbers are merely arbitrary. Yes, society needs some way to determine whether the relevant parties are capable of giving consent. It is not.a science, but society has determined that people 18/17, are capable of consenting to sex.
The human mind and body mature seperately. Checking out a nice pair of legs on a girl is,not wrong. She could be 17 she could be 18, we do not know and there is nothing wrong with looking.
But, at its core, this incident has nothing to do with age. Taking upskirt photos of women is clearly illegal, regardless of age.
Wc626
Yes, it is illegal. Everyone should have a reasonable expectation of privacy. Even chicks n' skirts on an escalator. The naked eye catching a glimpse is one thing. But being sneaky and snapping photos of the gals is illegal.
toshiko
Fadamor
Pants suits would solve a lot of the photo-taking in public. So would not rolling the hem of a knee-length school uniform skirt up so that it becomes an ersatz mini-skirt. I'm not saying that's what the victim of this incident did, but it DOES happen. A skirt that is knee length is going to be very difficult to get an upskirt photo from without being very obvious about it. Would that stop all of the predators? No. But it would stop SOME.
ADK99
@Famador, pant suits are a good idea, although it does somewhat smack of allowing perpetrators of illegal acts to restrict the behaviour of victims. I have to say though, even at knee length, I don't think it would be especially hard to take a snap on an escalator.
sighclops
There's no denying that Japan has a serious problem with deviants. You rarely hear of crimes of this nature anywhere else, and this is only exacerbated by the objectification of women, especially young girls in uniform in manga & anime. Just take a leisurely stroll around Akihabara for an hour and you'll see just how messed up it really is...
ADK99
It certainly is a problem, although part of the issue is that in some countries (the US for example) this kind of crime would barely warrant a mention in the news due to the sheer number of far more serious crimes reported. (And no, I am not suggesting for a second that this is not a serious crime).
smithinjapan
This is what happens when you dole out licenses based solely on rote memory testing.
toshiko
This is my guess. This pervert probsbly id fired because he eas absent of his job in school,
Serrano
"Well done Einstein…Blow your career taking photos of something you can find all over the internet."
Heck, he probably wanted to share his latest find on the internet!
IfeelImust
Smartphones ought to make a clear audable sound when the camera is operated IMO.
nath
Good thing this law already exists then.
IfeelImust
A soft click was not quite what I had in mind. How about a loudish YOUR PICTURE HAS BEEN TAKEN!
interuni321
Sad to see some people blaming the victims as usual. Also considering how many people use smartphones for innocent purposes on escalators, this guy must have really been going at it for someone to have spotted it and taken action. Good to know this guy will no longer have easy access to children and a position of authority over them.
toshiko
Murakami has admitted to the charge and was quoted by police that he got sexually turned on by taking upskirt photos
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He admitted why he did. Sounds Japan now has a criminal law against smartphone using perverts
sado001
This is very rampant in Japan, a LOT of people, especially middle-aged men do this all the time. Especially in temples or places where there are a lot of stairs (so that if the girl sits, he could see their underwear from below). But once they were caught they will say "Sorry, I just like taking pictures of beautiful women" bullsh*t, yeah they will be in jail for a round a year maximum. Some of them will be lucky not to go to jail, they will just let them write a promissory note saying "they will not do it again" then let them free.
I don't believe that Japan has a low-crime rate, Yes they have a low percentage of theft, etc. But they have a high percentage of sexual harassment and sexual crimes that sometimes they just let off because the one who do this sort of crime are men ages 45 above, and don't want to make it public because of shame..