Unsolved Ibaraki Supermarket Murder

On the 4th of May 2000, Taiki went to a supermarket to buy some juice with his girlfriend in Ushiku city, Ibaraki prefecture, Japan. What should have been a normal event turned into a terrible unsolved Japanese mystery that remains unanswered to this very day. Many believe that the Japanese police may have been trying to cover up the crime, but why? Why would the police do this?

If you are interested in Japanese mysteries, unsolved cases, bizarre stories, and unusual tales, make sure you subscribe!

[kyotorobato]

I had soooo many technical issues with this video, so sorry if there are any editing mistakes. I hope you find the video interesting nonetheless! Thank you so much for your support as always!

[cslworldwide]

I’m pretty sure some, if not all of these kids parents’ after finally seeing the released CCTV footage, recognized their kids in the video and still choose not to say anything. This is the most unbelievable part to me.

[nabukuma]

That poor mother, the videos were crystal clear, especially for that long-haired culprit. Definitely stinks of a familial/corrupt cover-up. No one’s that incompetent unless it’s on purpose.

[clashwithwords]

the cctv footage is so clear, I almost feel like if you just went through high school albums in the area you would be able to spot at least 1 person. the long wavy hair guy especially stands out

[j.murphy]

I think it's pretty obvious that Taiki was attacked because he was mistaken for the leader of a rival gang by these youths, who only meant to beat him but went too far. I think the most likely possibility is that at least one of the four had/has relatives in the police who sabotaged the investigation. I dare say that new leads could open up very quickly if someone looked through the sons and nephews of high ranking officers of the Ibaraki Prefectural Police at that time.

[mirandatree]

I feel terrible for that mother, she was working harder than the police it seemed, and got in trouble for it. Ridiculous how those kids were able to get away with it, even with the CCTV footage. I bet if that had been released sooner, they'd have been recognized.
Another great video! Thank you so much for all the research and work you do! and congrats on 1k subscribers! c: you definitely deserve it

[paulforder]

The police ought to be ashamed of themselves for not following up on the case, even when it's theorized that one of Daiki's murderers was the son of a high--ranking policeman. 👮
My condolences to Daiki's family. Hopefully his killers will get their karma right back at them! My blood boils at cases like this. 😠

[benlemaitre]

That has to be a cover-up. They had a witness, CCTV footage... It's like they didn't even try to catch them. But yeah juvi laws in Japan are kind of weird.

Anyway, another great video! As someone who can speak some Japanese, I appreciate that you give the quotes in both Japanese and English 🙂

[LauraMalfoy]

This is terrible, that poor mother. This totally sounds like a cover-up of some sort. Such a violent crime and they felt like they couldn't share the images of the CCTV because they were juveniles? Nah, I don't buy it. As for today, I feel someone that did such crimes can't have a normal life. Maybe they belong to some sort of criminal gang and that's why no one speaks about it.

[ThisDayinMystery]

Just insane that someone doesn't know these cats. I mean I'm in my 30s now but would definitely recognize 4 of my teenaged friends years later. Glad I found this channel! Great content!

[thequietestengine]

17 years later. They would have changed significantly, those images are useless. I suspect some level of corruption and influence from higher-ups or influential forces.

[BM-ptsy]

how such public, violent crimes go unsolved in Japan is just mind boggling.

[creepysinisterpasta]

Some pretty great editing on this one. Appreciate the fact that most, If not all, visuals are from the actual case. Far to many YouTubers dont bother to include actual footage and just place random pictures instead. So Big kudos to you !

[karla]

No words can describe how his parents are suffering. My heart goes out to them.

[marmaladeandtea-fdyg]

You have a fantastic way of storytelling, the cases you choose are interesting and unusual (to Western audiences), and your editing is superb. Hoping you get the subs you deserve soon, because there are plenty of other channels that are not nearly this detailed and put-together that have way more followers.

[crescent]

Wonder why police revealed their footage so late.I think one of them is a son of a important person among the police or the law system but there is so many possibilities like you said.Thanks for the new interesting video!

[weewooweewoo]

why they all look like beavis n butthead characters

[LinRuiEn]

If the CCTV was shown sooner and on news or posters, I believe this could have been solved fairly quickly for a case of this kind. My condolences to the family, law enforcement dropped the ball on this.
Thank you so much for your videos, it is hard to find good English language sources on many of the things you cover.

[jannet]

It’s so sad bc laws are meant to bring justice to the victims not help the criminals. If they are old enough to commit murder then they are old enough to live up to the consequences. May Taiki rest in peace.

[Emperor-Caligula]

Hi KR, thank you again for another interesting video. I seem to see a theme in a number of your subjects, and that's the general incompetence of the police and the failures of the Japanese legal system. You use the word "backward" to describe it, but in centuries past, criminal punishment was much harsher. It seems like a systemic failure, and the poor police work and lax legal system are a result of a low crime rate. It gives them an excuse to avoid reform because everything is "fine" the way it is. I hope that is changing.

You have opened my eyes to cases that I would have never heard about otherwise. Before your videos, the most regular experience I have had with Japanese culture is watching NJPW, which is hardly reflective of general society. I was one of your first 100 subscribers, so it is a delight to see how much your channel has grown in such a short amount of time. Once again, thank your for your hard work, it is much appreciated.