The Killer That Deformed His Own Face | The Disturbing Case of Tatsuya Ichihashi

Summary

The script narrates the chilling case of Tatsuya Ichihashi, who murdered Lindsay Hawker, an English teacher in Tokyo. After a harrowing encounter and subsequent English lesson, Lindsay disappeared, leading to a nationwide manhunt for Ichihashi, who evaded capture for years through self-mutilation and plastic surgery. The case shocked Japan and the UK, culminating in Ichihashi's life imprisonment, a stark reminder of the dangers lurking beneath the surface of seemingly innocent encounters.

Takeaways

• 🕵️‍♂️ The case of Tatsuya Ichihashi is a high-profile crime that shocked Japan and the UK due to its bizarre and gruesome nature.
• 🏡 Lindsay Hawker, the victim, was a bright and successful young woman from Coventry, England, who went to Japan for a teaching assignment with Nova, the largest private English school in Japan.
• 🚴‍♀️ Lindsay had an awkward encounter with Ichihashi, who followed her persistently, eventually leading to an agreement to give him English lessons.
• 📅 On March 24, 2007, Lindsay went missing after going to Ichihashi's apartment for a lesson, and her disappearance led to a nationwide manhunt in Japan.
• 🔍 The police discovered Lindsay's body, buried in a bathtub filled with sand and soil, with signs of an extended assault, indicating the severity of the crime.
• 🎨 Ichihashi was known to be a loner with a history of alleged assault and theft, and he had an obsession with physical fitness and a degree in horticulture.
• 👁️ To evade capture, Ichihashi underwent self-mutilation and plastic surgery, altering his appearance and living in remote locations.
• 💸 The Japanese police increased the reward for information leading to his arrest, and the public was advised to be on the lookout for someone resembling Ichihashi.
• 🔍 Ichihashi was eventually identified and arrested in 2009 after a plastic surgeon recognized him and reported it to the police.
• 🏢 His trial began in 2011, and he was sentenced to life imprisonment for the murder of Lindsay Hawker, despite public support for the death penalty.
• 📖 Ichihashi authored a book confessing to the murder and offering the royalties to Lindsay's family, which they rejected, highlighting the ongoing pain and loss they experienced.

Q & A

Who was Lindsay Hawker and what was her connection to Japan?

Lindsay Hawker was a British citizen born on December 30th, 1984, in Coventry, England. She was a successful student who achieved a first-class honours degree in biology from the University of Leeds. She decided to take a year out to travel and work, which led her to Japan in 2006, where she joined Nova, Japan's largest private English school, to teach English in Tokyo.

What was the initial interaction between Lindsay Hawker and Tatsuya Ichihashi?

The initial interaction occurred in March 2007 when Lindsay encountered Tatsuya at Chiba Station after work. Tatsuya approached her, claiming she was his English teacher, and followed her persistently. Eventually, he proposed to pay her for private English lessons, which she initially refused but later accepted after he offered to pay her 3,500 yen per hour.

What led to Tatsuya Ichihashi becoming a suspect in Lindsay Hawker's disappearance?

Lindsay's roommates reported her missing when she failed to show up for work and did not return home. The police found a sketch left by Tatsuya in Lindsay's apartment, and since she had last been seen going to meet him for an English lesson, he became the prime suspect.

How did Tatsuya Ichihashi manage to evade capture for an extended period?

Tatsuya Ichihashi managed to evade capture by constantly moving, living in remote locations such as a concrete bunker, and undergoing self-mutilation and plastic surgery to alter his appearance. He also used wigs and other disguises to avoid detection.

What was the role of the Japanese mafia, the Yakuza, in the search for Tatsuya Ichihashi?

Lindsay's father, Bill Hawker, met with members of the Yakuza in a bar and asked for their help in finding Tatsuya, offering them two bottles of whiskey as a present. While the script does not detail the Yakuza's involvement in his eventual capture, it highlights the desperation of Lindsay's family in seeking justice.

What was the significance of the plastic surgery in the case of Tatsuya Ichihashi?

The plastic surgery was significant as it allowed Tatsuya to change his appearance and avoid detection by the police. It was so effective that it led to the police raising the cash reward for information leading to his arrest and advising the public to be on the lookout for someone resembling Tatsuya's special identifications.

How did Tatsuya Ichihashi's capture finally occur?

Tatsuya was recognized by a worker at the ferry port in Osaka as he was attempting to flee to Okinawa. The worker alerted security, and Tatsuya was confronted by officers who asked for his name, to which he admitted his identity, leading to his formal arrest.

What was the outcome of Tatsuya Ichihashi's trial?

Tatsuya Ichihashi was sentenced to life imprisonment for the murder of Lindsay Hawker on July 21, 2011. Although there was public support for the death penalty, the court decided that life imprisonment was appropriate given his lack of previous convictions and the possibility of rehabilitation.

What was Tatsuya Ichihashi's background prior to the murder?

Tatsuya Ichihashi was born into a successful family in Gifu Prefecture and later moved to Chiba. He had ambitions to become a medical doctor but settled for a degree in horticulture after failing his exams. He lived off an allowance from his parents and had no intention of finding work. He had no previous convictions but was alleged to have assaulted a woman during a robbery, which was settled out of court.

What was the impact of the case on Lindsay Hawker's family and the public perception of the Japanese police?

The case caused immense pain and suffering for Lindsay's family, who felt that the Japanese police were growing lazy and sloppy in their investigations. The case also received significant media attention, leading to public scrutiny of the police's handling of the case and the court system's sentencing decision.

Outlines

00:00

🕵️‍♂️ The Mysterious Case of Tatsuya Ichihashi

This paragraph introduces the crime story of Tatsuya Ichihashi, a man who became Japan's most wanted for the murder of Lindsay Hawker. It sets the stage with the chilling details of his evasion, including plastic surgery and a nationwide manhunt. The narrative begins in Coventry, England, where Lindsay Hawker, a successful university graduate with a bright future, decides to take a year off to travel and work in Japan. She joins Nova, a prestigious English teaching school, and moves to Tokyo, enjoying the city's vibrant life. However, her life takes a tragic turn when she encounters Ichihashi, leading to a case that shocks two nations.

05:00

📚 An Innocent Offer Turns Deadly

In this paragraph, the story unfolds as Tatsuya Ichihashi approaches Lindsay Hawker for English lessons after an awkward encounter. Despite initial hesitation, Lindsay agrees to tutor him due to the generous payment. Tatsuya, a 28-year-old from a successful family, had failed to follow his father's footsteps into medicine and lived off an allowance. He had a history of alleged assault but no convictions. The encounter at Lindsay's apartment, where Tatsuya insists on being let in for a glass of water, sets a foreboding tone for their first lesson and the tragic events that follow.

10:01

🚔 The Disappearance and Manhunt for Lindsay Hawker

This paragraph details the disappearance of Lindsay Hawker after her fateful visit to Tatsuya Ichihashi's apartment. Her absence is noticed when she misses work and fails to return home. The police become involved, and through her roommates, they identify Ichihashi as a suspect. A police raid on his apartment reveals Lindsay's body, brutally murdered and hidden in a bathtub filled with soil and sand. The shocking discovery includes signs of an extended assault, and the police launch a desperate search for Ichihashi, who has seemingly vanished.

15:03

🔍 The Elusive Fugitive and the Global Manhunt

The narrative shifts to the extensive manhunt for Tatsuya Ichihashi, who has managed to evade capture for years. His ability to stay hidden is attributed to his physical transformation through self-mutilation and plastic surgery. Despite the efforts of the police and the Hawker family's personal involvement in the investigation, Ichihashi remains at large. The case garners international attention, with the police offering a substantial reward for information leading to his arrest and releasing altered images to aid in identification.

20:04

🗓️ The Capture, Trial, and Sentencing of Tatsuya Ichihashi

This paragraph concludes the story with the eventual capture of Tatsuya Ichihashi in Osaka. His arrest comes after a plastic surgeon recognizes him and notifies the police. Ichihashi's trial is highly publicized, and he is sentenced to life imprisonment for the murder of Lindsay Hawker. The court's decision not to impose the death penalty sparks debate, but the verdict is largely accepted by the public. Ichihashi's attempt to atone through a book about his crimes is rejected by Lindsay's family, who continue to mourn their irreplaceable loss.

Keywords

💡Tatsuya Ichihashi

Tatsuya Ichihashi is the main suspect and perpetrator in the video's case study. He is a central figure whose actions and subsequent evasion of capture are the focus of the narrative. His name is repeatedly mentioned as the individual who murdered Lindsay Hawker and then went on the run, altering his appearance through plastic surgery and self-mutilation to avoid detection.

💡Lindsay Hawker

Lindsay Hawker is the victim in this tragic case. She was a British national teaching English in Japan and is the reason the case gained international attention. Her disappearance and murder are the central events around which the video's story is built, highlighting the shock and despair it caused across two nations.

💡Nova Teaching School

Nova Teaching School is depicted as a prestigious institution that recruits adults from around the world to teach English in Japan. Lindsay Hawker was one of the individuals who joined this school, which is how she ended up in Japan and eventually encountered Tatsuya Ichihashi.

💡Chiba

Chiba is a prefecture in Japan where both Lindsay Hawker and Tatsuya Ichihashi lived. It is the location where Lindsay was approached by Tatsuya and later where her murder took place. The script mentions specific districts within Chiba, such as Kaiwa and Ichikawa, as key places in the unfolding of events.

💡Plastic Surgery

Plastic surgery is mentioned in the context of Tatsuya Ichihashi's attempts to alter his appearance and avoid capture by the police. It is a significant aspect of the video as it shows the lengths he went to in order to evade justice.

💡Wanted Poster

A wanted poster is a public notice used to help identify and locate a person sought by the police. In the video, the distribution of Tatsuya Ichihashi's wanted posters across Japan is discussed as a part of the extensive manhunt that ensued after his identification as the prime suspect.

💡Life Imprisonment

Life imprisonment is the sentence Tatsuya Ichihashi received for the murder of Lindsay Hawker. It is a key part of the video's conclusion, illustrating the punishment he faced for his crimes. The script also discusses the debate around whether the death penalty should have been applied.

💡Yakuza

The Yakuza are mentioned in the context of Lindsay's father seeking their help in finding Tatsuya Ichihashi. This detail is significant as it shows the desperation and the lengths the family was willing to go to in order to seek justice for Lindsay.

💡Self-Mutilation

Self-mutilation is described as one of the methods Tatsuya Ichihashi used to change his appearance while evading capture. The script provides examples of how he cut off his moles, part of his lip, and altered the shape of his nose, which are extreme measures indicative of his determination to avoid detection.

💡Cross-Dresser

The term 'cross-dresser' is used in the script to describe rumors about Tatsuya Ichihashi possibly wearing wigs and being involved in cross-dressing activities. This is suggested by the discovery of several wigs in his apartment and the fact that he allegedly asked Lindsay for a glass of water in her apartment, which could have been an opportunity to observe her hair.

💡Decomposition Agent

A decomposition agent is a substance that accelerates the process of decomposition. In the script, it is mentioned that Tatsuya Ichihashi used such an agent in the bathtub where Lindsay's body was found, indicating his intention to dispose of the evidence more quickly.

Highlights

The crime involving Tatsuya Ichihashi and Lindsay Hawker united two nations in shock and despair.

Ichihashi was Japan's most wanted suspect, who deformed his face to hide his identity.

Lindsay Hawker was a successful British student with a bright future who decided to travel and work in Japan.

Lindsay's academic achievements included a first-class honours degree in biology from the University of Leeds.

She taught English in Japan through Nova, the country's largest private English school.

An awkward encounter with Ichihashi in Chiba led to Lindsay's disappearance and subsequent murder.

Ichihashi pursued Lindsay, leading to an offer for English lessons and a strange request for water at her apartment.

Lindsay agreed to give Ichihashi English lessons, unaware of his true intentions.

Ichihashi had a background in horticulture but no work experience, living off an allowance from his parents.

He had a history of alleged assault and theft, with his father reportedly settling out of court.

Lindsay's disappearance led to a nationwide manhunt for Ichihashi, who managed to evade capture for years.

Ichihashi underwent plastic surgery and self-mutilation to alter his appearance and avoid detection.

The case sparked international attention and criticism of the Japanese police's handling of the investigation.

Lindsay's family's efforts in Japan, including meeting with the Yakuza, highlighted their determination for justice.

Ichihashi was eventually arrested in 2009 after being recognized and fleeing to a ferry port.

His trial and life imprisonment sentence brought some closure to the case, though not the death penalty sought by Lindsay's family.

Ichihashi's published book about his crime and time on the run was rejected by Lindsay's family.

The tragic story of Lindsay Hawker serves as a reminder of the importance of safety while traveling abroad.

Transcripts

it was a crime so strange called and

calculated that it united two nations in

shock and despair

and with the suspect soaring to the top

of japan's most wanted list

he would deform his own face to keep his

real identity hidden to the world

my name is adrian and welcome back to

coffee house crime today we're looking

at the case of tatsuya ichihashi and his

victim

lindsay hawker there are many strange

and disturbing details to this case

including a body and a flower pot

plastic surgery to avoid detection

and a world hunt for a suspect that

would take police years across the

entire nation of japan to capture

so pull up a seat grab a coffee and sit

back this is the case of tatsuya

ichihashi

[Music]

although our story today takes us to

japan we're starting it in england in a

city called coventry

is located deep in the midlands of

england

known for its medieval cathedral and

sadly also for its destruction during

world war ii

coventry has bounced back in the last

few decades to become an engineering

powerhouse to the united kingdom

with easy access to both london and

birmingham and most of the country less

than a two-hour drive away

it's a well-situated city with a lot to

offer to its residents

and one of those residents was lindsay

hawker

[Music]

lindsay was born on december 30th 1984

to her father bill and mother julia

hawker

she was a happy child growing up and had

two sisters named louise and lisa

she was schooled at king henry viii

school and at the end of college she

ventured to the university of leeds to

study biology

she met university with academic success

too and in 2006

she achieved a first class honours grade

being both very serious about her future

career while also being popular among

her friends

lindsay had lot going for her she was

bright nurturing

caring and successful but she also had

an appetite to try something new before

pursuing her master's degree

and so in mid 2006 she hatched up a plan

lindsay decided to take a year out of a

busy schedule to do a bit of travelling

while she worked

she figured that a year out of education

would bring a new perspective to her

life

and so in october 2006 she signed up to

nova teaching school and found herself

on a plane to japan

she had signed up to nova japan's

largest private english school

which recruits adults from around the

world to teach the language in both

osaka and tokyo

nova is considered to be a prestigious

assignment and lindsay was one of the

lucky few who managed to grab a spot

after touching down in tokyo lindsay was

finally assigned to kaiwa

a district in the edagawa ward of tokyo

and she would quickly find both comfort

and excitement in their surroundings

located only 17 minutes away from

akihabara and 22 minutes away from

asakusa

there's a plethora of sites activities

and fun things to do near koiwa

whether you're there for food parks

shopping temples or just a good drink

tokyo has it all

she had found herself in one of the most

interesting cities that the world has to

offer

and she was loving it she decided to

move a little further east from tokyo

center to a place called

chiba here the rent was cheaper she also

moved in with two other teachers both of

them

also working at another school and very

quickly the three would become friends

and soon after lindsay's time in tokyo

started to fly by

although she was loving her time away

from home lindsay often still thought

about home

she had a loving family a large group of

friends and a boyfriend back in england

and so with that said the home bird

often kept in contact through facebook

skype text and phone call

it was six months into a stay in tokyo

in march 2007

that lindsay had an awkward encounter

she had finished work for the day and

traveled back to chiba station before

collecting her bike

as she was unlocking her bike a man

approached her from behind

when she turned around the man greeted

her by saying you are my english

teacher.

lindsay was confused by the situation

she was sure that he was not one of her

students

she awkwardly declined to comment but

the man continued following her

she jumped on her bike and began to

cycle away but still the man followed

her

she sped up his walking turned into

jogging and then his jogging

into running and with cheba's many roads

and intersecting walkways

it was almost impossible for lindsay to

escape him he continued to strike a

conversation

asking lindsay where she was from and

where she studied she still tried to

shake him off though

she eventually reached her apartment and

this is where she stopped her bike

the man was known as tatsuya ichihashi

and he had been running after lindsay

for the entire duration back home

when he finally caught up with her he

had a proposal to make

and despite a strange performance the

offer was simple and innocent enough

tatsuya asked lindsay if she'd be

interested in providing him english

lessons

he felt like he needed a little bit of

help with the language

they could meet in a cafe and he'd pay

her generously by the hour

lindsay politely refused her work

schedule was busy enough

and the time she did have off was on her

own terms having fun

tatsuya was disappointed but he did seem

to accept her answer

it was here though that he asked her one

final strange question

he was thirsty after pretty much chasing

lindsay throughout the streets of chiba

he asked her if she'd politely provide

him a glass of water in her apartment

lindsay was hesitant but reluctantly she

did allow him into the apartment

sure he was a strange man and he did

make her feel uncomfortable

but she had two roommates this was a

good opportunity to indirectly show the

man that she did have company at all

times

and it was an opportunity for her

friends to see his face should it ever

come up again in the future

they entered the apartment together and

it was insider apartment while having

his drink

that he made the offer again it came

with a price tag this time

he'd paid lindsay 3 500 yen or 32

an hour and the interaction would be

strictly business

this was an offer lindsay couldn't

refuse although nova was helping her get

by in tokyo

she could do with some extra cash and

this was easy money

she agreed to his request deciding to

meet him at a coffee shop a few days

later

tatsuya was appreciative and he thanked

lindsay for the offer

before he'd leave her apartment though

he wanted to give her one last thing

he whipped out a pen from his back

pocket and grabbed some scrap paper

and then he started scribbling something

a few moments later he handed her the

note

it was a sketch he had just drawn one of

lindsay

and along the sketch was his name and

his phone number

tatsuya ichihashi was a 28 year old man

from the city of ichikawa

also located in chiba prefecture

he was born in gifu prefecture on the

5th of january 1979

and initially grew up there before

moving to chiba

he was born into a successful family his

father was a medical doctor at a local

hospital in chiba

while his mother was also a professional

dentist

in his younger years tatsuya had

ambitions to follow his father's

footsteps in becoming a medical doctor

but when he failed his exams and was

denied in advancing his studies

he settled for degree from the

department of horticulture

he graduated from chiba university in

2005

and although he passed his degree

relatively well tatia did not make

effort to find any work

instead he lived on an allowance of 100

000 yen or

920 a month from his parents

and this is where we learn a little more

about the dark half of tatsuya ichihashi

tatsuya had no previous convictions with

the law but he had been the subject of

an allegation of prior theft and injury

allegedly he had assaulted a woman on

the street during a robbery

but the matter had been settled out of

court it is alleged that his father paid

the woman off with around 1 million yen

or

10 000 he was also described as a loner

with an obsession for physical fitness

tatsuya regularly attended his local gym

and he often cycled over 25 kilometers

every day

in addition to this tatsuya was known to

be a little reclusive

rebellious and had no intention to find

any work and with only 900

a month to get by were weekly sessions

at 35

an hour really that sustainable back to

lindsay's apartment though

after handing her the sketch with his

name and his number tatsia thanked

lindsay for a time

and the glass of water he wished her

well until that meets a few days later

fast forward several days and it is now

saturday the 24th of march 2007.

lindsay had contacted tatsuya a couple

days prior and they'd arranged for their

first english lesson in a local coffee

shop

cctv captured the two conversing while

in the queue to grab a drink

lindsay seemed relatively relaxed but

she did make clear steps backwards

whenever tatsuya moved too close

the pair sat and spoke ford is assumed

to be a little over an hour

and progress was good at the end of it

though saturday awkwardly pointed out

that he'd forgotten his money

no worries he said only live half a mile

down the road

why don't you come by and grab your

money and then be on your way

lindsay agreed and so the two hopped

into a taxi

lindsay hadn't brought her bike with her

that day and she also had work later on

in the afternoon

so when she arrived at tatsuya she asked

the taxi driver if he'd be so kind to

wait for her

he agreed and so lindsay followed tatsia

into his apartment

several minutes later though lindsay

still hadn't returned

that's a little strange the taxi driver

thought but maybe she's had a change of

plans

no worries and so on that note he left

completely forgetting about the incident

lindsay failed to show up to work late

that afternoon however

and even worse she never made it back to

her apartment either

her housemates already noting that she

wasn't at work that day

started to worry about lindsay they

called to the police later that night to

report her missing

but saturday turned into sunday and

sunday turned into monday

the family and friends of lindsay back

home in the united kingdom were already

starting to grow worried over her radio

silence

it was only after monday though when she

missed a second day of work

that panic really started to set in the

school contacted her parents to let them

know that she had now missed two days in

a row

and straight after that they contacted

the police it was only then though that

the police started taking lindsay's

disappearance

a little more seriously police search

efforts started at lindsay's home

and the housemates were the first to be

interviewed

and with luck they already had a suspect

in mind

they knew that lindsay went to see a man

in a coffee shop shortly before she

disappeared

and she'd also left his sketch back in

the apartment

this was their first clue

it was around 5 40 pm that two officers

were dispatched to tatsuya's home

but after knocking on his door no one

answered it

his neighbours though were at home and

kindly they let officers peer over from

the balcony and into tatsia's living

room

there were no lights on in the property

but there did appear to be somebody

lurking around inside

and weirdly enough his detachable

bathtub had been moved from the bathroom

to the balcony on a hunch the two

officers called for backup

they were worried that maybe lindsay was

inside being held hostage

and within the hour seven more officers

arrived three hours and nine officers

later

and police were getting ready to raid

tatsuya's home

it was then in a surprise moment that

tatsuya opened his front door with a

rucksack in their feet

in that split moment of panic tatsuya

stormed past police

they tried to grab him but only managed

to get his rucksack tatsuya himself

slipped by they didn't manage to keep up

with tatsuya either

with the building's hallways being so

narrow and confusing he managed to get

by

and with police officers lacking any

radio equipment they lost all sight of

the man

so in the middle of tokyo city tatsuya

vanished into the night

it was as if the man had literally

disappeared into thin air

because tatsuya was nowhere to be found

police officers investigating his

property just moments later

would be in for a gruesome scene

there they had found the naked body of

lindsey hawker

she was found buried in tatsia's

detachable bathtub

which he had moved himself to the

balcony

the tub had been filled with a mixture

of sand and soil

almost entirely covering lindsay with

only her right hand emerging from the

surface

she had been bound and gagged with

plastic ties and scarves

and bruises were present across her

upper body

in her final hour she had been subjected

to an extended assault her possessions

still scattered across the room

along with the body sand and soil in the

balcony bathtub

it also contained a decomposing agent to

speed up the process of decomposition

and flower seeds were placed on top to

disguise the bathtub as a flowerbed

the seeds eventually would be feeding

off lindsay's body

to add to the harrowing discovery it was

also strangely noted that

tatsuya had shaved all of lindsay's hair

off of her head

police would also discover several wigs

in tatsu's apartment

alleging that perhaps he was a

cross-dresser

this quickly became public knowledge and

soon after rumors even started

circulating to suggest that maybe

tatsuya

had killed lindsay to wear her hair as a

wig

by the next morning tatsu ichihashi was

officially a wanted man across all of

japan

police distributed wanted posters across

the city his face was shown across

multiple news sites

interviews given to anyone who may have

potential information

and raids were witnessed at locations of

possible sightings of the suspect

but despite all efforts just like a

ghost

tatia was nowhere to be seen hardly any

sightings of the man were reported over

the following weeks

in fact all of them turned into dead

ends police were so keen to capture the

suspects though that they decided to

release photoshopped images of tatsuya

wearing wigs

just in case he was out in drag

but tatsuya was good at remaining

unnoticed in fact he was so good at

evading the police that his

disappearance turned from weeks

into months into years

and this frustrated lindsay's family

because in addition to the relentless

pain that they had to experience from

the loss of their daughter

was the feeling that her killer got away

it was not just that but they also felt

that japanese police were growing lazy

and sloppy in their investigations

it angered lindsay's parents so much

actually that just months after her

death the two would travel to japan and

single-handedly assist in raising

awareness of lindsay's killer

her father bill even met members of the

japanese mafia the yakuza

in a bar giving them two bottles of

whiskey as a present

before asking them for their help and as

time went on

japanese police soon found themselves in

the center of the spotlight

how did nine police officers let one man

slip by

why did they take a month to quiz vital

witnesses

and did they know that their wanted

poster had a picture seven years out of

date

police and the hawker family would

slowly start to argue against each other

and soon british and japanese media were

involved too

and while all of this was happening

tatsuya was still out there

he had actually traveled across most of

japan during his time on the run

ranging from aomori one of the most

northern cities on japan's main island

right down to the southern island of

okinawa tatsuya had remained

unnoticed he even lived on a remote

island in a concrete bunker at times to

avoid detection too

a year after lindsay's death in 2008 and

right through 2009

tatsuya found himself in osaka

located 250 miles west of tokyo osaka is

a large port city and a commercial

center to honshu

it's known for its modern architecture

nightlife and hearty street food

it was during this time that tatsuya

routinely lived in internet cafes and

worked on construction sites to get by

with the money that he could save up he

would put that towards plastic surgery

to change his appearance and avoid being

caught by the law

however he had actually already changed

his appearance through self-mutilation

ever since becoming wanted by the law

he'd cut off his moles

used scissors to cut off part of his

lower lip and eventually sued a thread

through his nose to alter its shape

by the summer of 2009 police were

painfully desperate to find tatsia

it was here that the national police

agency raised the cash reward for

information leading to the arrest of him

from 1 million to 10 million yen they

also released a new statement advising

it was believed that

tatsuya had plastic surgery performed to

his face to alter his appearance

and that people should be on the lookout

for resemblances of tatsuya's special

identifications

and it worked because in october 2009 a

plastic surgeon located in nagoya

informed police that he believed that he

had just worked on tatsuya

tatsuya had foolishly accepted to take a

before and after picture of his

operation

the same photos would be shared with

police and eventually the world

this rattled tetsuya he knew that the

newly released photos by police had

blown his cover

in fact it was so successful that one of

his colleagues back at a construction

site in osaka

recognized him tatsuya knew that he had

to get out of osaka

and hide fast his plan was as he had

done before in several other close calls

fleet okinawa and take refuge in one of

the abandoned concrete bunkers found

across its many remote islands

on the 10th of november 2009 he

discreetly fled to osaka's ferry port

three days of keeping his head low on a

slow ferry takanawa and he would finally

be in a much safer position

away from justice but before he could

even reach the boat

tatsuya's luck would finally run out

a worker at the very port had actually

recognized his face

and informed security that this could

very well be the ichihashi

and they were right because only moments

later tatsuya came face to face with a

handful of officers

they asked him for his name and at this

stage he knew it was over

he told them yes i am tatsuya ichihashi

the game was over

he was then formally arrested by police

and was initially charged with

abandoning a body

he would later be served two more

warrants for rape and murder

and it would take eight months for him

to finally meet his jury

on the 4th of july 2011 his trial began

and with the outcome pretty certain from

the very beginning deliberation wouldn't

last long

a lot of attention was focused on how

japan's court system would punish

tatsuya

although japan does enforce the death

penalty not a lot of single-person

murderers find it to be their fate

but tatsuya was a well-publicized man in

the media and many voices supported the

idea

during his trial tatsu admitted that he

enticed lindsay into his apartment

raped her and then strangled her because

he feared neighbours would hear her

scream

and call the police on the 21st of july

2011

tatsuya ichihashi was officially

sentenced to life imprisonment for the

murder of lindsay hawker

and although lindsay's family had asked

for the death penalty for tatsuya

the court felt that the death penalty

was not appropriate as he had no

previous convictions

and at the age of 32 there was still a

chance that he could one day become

rehabilitated

the trial would not come without its

fair share of new devastation and pain

to lindsay's family however

not only would they have to relive her

final moments again but they would also

have to see new images of lindsay's body

something they regret ever seeing

following tatsuya's sentence

lindsay's parents shared the following

to state media

we've waited a long time for today we've

waited four and a half years for justice

lindsay loved japan and you have not let

her down

ichihashi you have taken away a precious

life

destroyed a whole existence and stolen

countless memories from us

the verdict which puts tatsu behind bars

for life was welcomed by most people in

the nation

and tatsu himself accepting his own fate

shortly before trial tatsu had actually

authored and published a book

confessing to lindsay's murder most of

his biography describing how he'd spent

two and a half years on the run

and what he had to do to avoid detection

the book which was named until i was

arrested was offered with all royalties

and profits to lindsay's family

and over one hundred thousand copies

would sell worldwide

but lindsay's family rejected the offer

and despite tatsuya's strange attempt as

a good deed

nothing could bring them back their

daughter

lindsay was well loved successful

cheerful

and irreplaceable

she was in the middle of an incredible

experience abroad

doing good by teaching others a valuable

new skill

and in the end it was a kindness that

was used against her

by a strange heartless man

she will be daily missed by her parents

her sisters

and all of her friends

[Music]

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[Music]

goodbye

you