Japan is famous all over the world as a country of high technology and deeply moral moral principles. In this state, the crime rate is quite low. It is hard to believe that truly terrible crimes can be committed there. And yet, even in Japan, law enforcement officials sometimes have to investigate criminal cases, from which normal people get cold blood. Junko Furuta, a schoolgirl, became the victim of one of the most brutal murders in the modern history of Japanese forensics.
The beginning of a deadly nightmare
In the late autumn of 1988, four minor boys abducted a 16-year-old girl. The high school student Junko Furuta became a victim of criminals. The oldest of her captors at the time of the crime was 17 years old, his name is Hiroshi Miyano. Three friends of the organizer participated in the abduction: Jo Ogura, Shinji Minato and Yasushi Watanabe. The criminals forcibly brought their victim to the house of Hiroshi Miyano's parents. From that moment on, Junko’s life turned into an ongoing nightmare. The abductors forced the girl to call her relatives and say that she left the parental home voluntarily and is in a safe place with friends. Junko Furuta was introduced to Miyano's parents as a friend of one of his fellow accomplices.
Life in hell
The kidnapped girl was held in custody by criminals from the end of November 1988 to January 4, 1989. Prison for Junko became the house of the Miyano family. Parents of the kidnapper quickly enough realized that the girl was a captive. They were prevented from contacting the police by the fact that Hiroshi was a member of the Yakuza criminal group and promised to kill anyone who got into his business. From the very first day of her imprisonment, Furuta was subjected to regular rape, including in a particularly perverse form, beatings and physical torture. The girl was punished for any “misconduct”, was not allowed to leave the house, and was kept without water and food for days. Junko Furuta begged Miyano's parents to help her escape or call the police. At times, she asked her offenders to simply kill her and already “stop all this.”
Case of a murdered and cemented high school student
The condition of the captive due to numerous injuries and ongoing bullying has steadily worsened. The last weeks of his life, Junko hardly moved around the house on his own. In order to get crawling to the bathroom, she needed about an hour. On January 4, 1989, Miyano and friends again brutally beat the girl. After that, the attackers doused Junko with gasoline from a lighter and set it on fire. As later established by forensic experts, the girl died from pain shock. The next day, it was decided to get rid of the body. The corpse was placed in a large barrel and poured with a solution of cement, after which it was taken to a construction site. The discovered body with traces of numerous sadistic tortures caused a wide public resonance. The Furuta case was called the “high school girl murder and cementing case”. Quickly enough, law enforcement officers managed to identify and detain the criminals.
Shocking crime details
In Japan,
juvenile justice operated during the events described
. For this reason, representatives of official structures did not give detailed comments on the progress of the investigation and hid the identities of the criminals. For the first time, the real names of the murderers appeared in the newspaper Shkan Bunshun, the correspondents of which stated that "the rights of people do not apply to cattle." It was in this edition that biographies of criminals and many shocking details of the perfect murder were published. Hiroshi Miyano and his accomplices almost immediately began to cooperate with the investigation. Sadistic minors told in detail how they tortured the girl. In their testimony, the defendants stated that the murder of Junko Furuta was not part of their plans. The criminals claimed that they did not realize until the death of the victim how serious damage was inflicted on her. According to the killers, until the last moment they thought that Junko was pretending to be so pained and ill.
Court and sentence for killers
At the time of the trial, all the perpetrators were minors. Despite this fact, they were tried as adults, in all severity of local laws. The court found all four accused guilty. For torture and murder of Junko Furuta, the criminals received from 4 to 17 years in prison. The sentence seemed very soft to the victims - the relatives of the murdered girl. Junko’s parents even tried to appeal the court’s decision. However, due to a number of circumstances, they could not do it. The main criminal, Hiroshi Miyano (the victim was kept in his house), served 17 years in prison. The first thing he did after his release was to change his last name. So did his most active accomplice. Obviously, the criminals realized that the killings in Japan are committed, as in any other country, but their compatriots will never forget their atrocities.
Mention of Junko Furut in popular art and culture
The history of Furuta to the core shocked the inhabitants of Japan and many people outside this country. The first feature film about the fate of an unhappy girl was shot in 1995 by her compatriot - director Katsuya Matsumura. In 2004, another master of
Japanese cinema , Hiroma Nakamura, dedicated a film called “Concrete” to Junko. In both films, the torture and murder of the girl are rather rigidly shown. A similar story cannot be forgotten or ignored, but still such a movie is not recommended for impressionable people. In memory of Junko Furuta, a manga was created and a song recorded. Murders in Japan are committed regularly, but the story of this girl will forever remain in the memory of every Japanese. This crime is shocking at its inhumanity and unreasonable cruelty, as well as the lack of motive. It is difficult to believe that ordinary young people whom the psychiatric examination recognized as sane committed this murder.