Obsessed man pleads guilty to stabbing Japanese pop singer, whose face is now scarred

By Lydia Lam
The Straits Times
Feb 21, 2017

A man obsessed with a Japanese pop singer on Monday (Feb 20) pleaded guilty to stabbing her in Tokyo last May.

Tomohiro Iwazaki, then 27, stabbed Mayu Tomita, then 20, dozens of times in the neck and chest as she waited to appear at a concert venue in Tokyo on May 22 last year.

Iwazaki was arrested on the spot.

Prosecutors at the Tachikawa branch of the Tokyo District Court said Iwazaki, now 28, wanted to marry Tomita after watching her shows, The Japan Times reported on Tuesday (Feb 21).

The indictment said that Iwazaki was angered and humiliated when Tomita returned his gifts.
The court session was later suspended as a lay judge fainted during a description of Tomita's injuries.

Tomita, who was taken to hospital in critical condition, was discharged in September last year.

The incident left her scarred on her face, with vision problems in her left eye, and she is unable to take public transport alone, said The Japan Times.

The incident drew public outcry over police inaction and lack of concern over stalking crimes, The Japan Times said.

A stricter, revised law to tackle online stalking in Japan was enacted in December last year.

The police apologised to Tomita for their lack of action as she had lodged a report days before the attack.

Tomita had accused the police of being seemingly unable to comprehend the extent of her fears over her physical safety.

"I explained every detail about the danger I felt at that time and also told the police officers about my worries and fear that I could be killed," she said.