July 2018 Tokyo Detention Center
There is no doubt about it. He has admitted to the charges.
Next in the news....
Nakamura Yuka, a second year middle school student, living in Yatobi City, Kanagawa Prefecture,
who was reported missing, was found dead on Mt. Hattobi.
The body has strangulation marks, and the police
are investigating the case as a murder and abandonment case...
Matsumoto Yoshio, 62 years old.
Between 2002 and 2006,
he is accused of assaulting and murdering a series of women,
and is now in death row.
However, suddenly claiming that he had been falsely accused
and setting out to find the truth of the matter,
is Kishimoto Takuro, the new director of "Friday Bonbon",
a variety show with perpetually low ratings.
What's more, the real culprit might still out there.
And I, Asakawa Ena, have been inadvertently drawn into this.
I'd been thinking of doing some investigative journalism on the show.
However, Takuro Kishimoto was met with strong opposition from his superiors,
and he confessed that he had only done it
because he was blackmailed by someone.
He backed down right away.
Last week, a second year middle school student, Nakamura Yuka...
Around that time, a new murder case occurred on Mt. Hattobi.
I don't know if this is the work of the real murderer.
But I am not
going to back down now.
Well, there's been a lot of news this week.
Here is the news that I, Asakawa Ena focused on tonight.
Ena's Eye!
Yay!
Introducing the news for this week is this.
What's going on?
The number of boar attacks is proliferating across the country.
- Oh.... - The last few years...
My intention
was not to back down.
Okay, then.
For the news we'll be covering in this week's Ena's Eye,
who would like to see the boar attacks?
Yes!
And who wants the case of the middle school girl?
Okay, let's go with "boars".
- It's not just about the damage... - No, wait a minute.
What the public is focusing on now is not the boar attacks, right?
It doesn't matter.
Ena's Eye is the corner where Asakawa Ena explains the news that caught her attention,
not what everybody thinks.
Exactly, Asakawa Ena is paying attention to this news.
Are you an amateur?
Asakawa Ena isn't the one who decides what Asakawa Ena is paying attention to.
We decide the news that we want Asakawa Ena to pay attention to,
as though she's really paying attention to it.
If you don't like it then feel free to quit!
I don't like it, but I won't quit.
Oh! I thought it was menopause, but she's just being rebellious.
Oh, scary...
I'm not being rebellious.
Saying I have menopause is sexual harassment. Please stop it.
Yes, sorry.
From now on, I'll say it behind your back.
Well, anyway, I don't think it's suitable for our show.
It's too heavy. It darkens the tone of the program.
I think it depends on how you do it.
Do it in a light-hearted way?
It's a murder case, right?
I won't do it cheerfully,
but I can keep the viewers interested.
No, the point is...
if you try it and it doesn't work out, can you take responsibility?
"Friday Bonbon" has been going on for 10 years because of this looseness.
For what it's worth, the numbers are stable, too.
- Yes. - We are moving up through the ranks.
The average rating is 4.2%, right?
I wouldn't call that stable...
Yes, since Asakawa Ena is stuck in her corner, frustrated, and saying things she shouldn't, let's move on.
Next, entertainment.
It's not stability, it's just that the show has never recovered from its decline.
To begin with, "Friday Bonbon"
was the lowest-ranking show on the station.
A former sports bureau director who was transferred because of an affair.
A producer who was treated as a nuisance by the press room.
A female announcer who fell from grace due to a scandal.
An incompetent rookie who got in solely based on his educational background.
A place for dropouts,
that's "Friday Bonbon".
A place where you don't have to be talented or work hard to survive.
But for me personally,
I hate calling it stability.
Asakawa-san, do you mind if I fix your make-up?
What? Is something wrong?
Excuse me.
Thank you very much, Asakawa-san.
Eh?
I heard from Kishimoto-san.
Regarding the case, you have been very supportive, Asakawa-san.
I wanted to convey my thanks.
Yes, it's OK now.
Cherry-san.
Do you have some time later?
Regarding this case,
I'm going to follow up on it.
Eh?
Kishimoto-kun seems to have given up.
But I can't give up.
Cherry-san...
Matsumoto-san is really not the culprit.
Do you truly believe that?
Yes, I do.
Yes, I do. With all my heart.
What's the basis for that?
To be honest...
I'm not able to talk to the police or the courts.
I don't have any evidence.
I can only say that I think so.
But...
For example, the day of the incident.
November 18, 2006.
Yes.
Actually, it was my 14th birthday that day.
I didn't realize that.
In the end, I ran away from home.
I was allowed to stay at Matsumoto's house.
And on that day,
I was just hanging out at the arcade that evening.
Somehow, I was really lucky that day.
I was thinking that maybe it was because it was my birthday.
I couldn't go home because I didn't run out of medals.
When I finally ran out, it was already dark outside.
I smelled curry nearby.
I was thinking, "That's nice, I want to eat curry."
Welcome back.
You should come home sooner, it's not safe.
It'll be sunset soon.
I'm sorry.
Oh, it's curry!
Get a plate ready.
Okay.
Is it good?
Yes.
That's great.
Happy birthday.
For me,
it was the first birthday cake I ever ate in my life.
My own parents had never done that for me.
And I've...
been thinking about it over and over again,
since the day my uncle got caught.
Can I really say that he wasn't who I thought he was?
How could a 14-year-old girl,
know who a 50-year-old man really was?
Maybe it's not something I could understand.
He kept things from me.
Like his adult magazines and pornography.
He had a closet full of them.
There were other aspects of him that I didn't know about.
There may have been more to him that I didn't know about.
But....
Still....
He celebrated my birthday,
on that same day...
Matsumoto killing another girl,
I just couldn't believe it was possible.
No matter how I think about it, it's absolutely impossible.
That's all I can say...
According to the trial transcripts that Cherry-san has kept,
accounts of Matsumoto's behavior on the day of the crime
differed greatly between the defense and prosecution sides.
November 18, 2006 5:03 p.m.
Matsumoto Yoshio, a sheet metal worker at the time,
finished work, stamped his time card, and left the factory on his bicycle.
5:27 p.m.
At Yorozuya supermarket, he bought
carrots, onions, potatoes,
200g shredded pork, curry roux,
2 cans of beer, pickles
and a loaf of bread.
5:40 p.m.
At a cake shop Bonne Forêt,
he bought a slice of shortcake.
Then he headed straight home,
arriving at around 5:52 PM.
After that,
he spent an hour slowly making curry.
That was the defense's assertion.
- Excuse me. One bike, please. - Yes. This way, please.
This is 129 yen. This is 198 yen.
That makes 1,499 yen.
You paid 1,500 yen.
Meanwhile, the prosecution claims...
Matsumoto went shopping at a supermarket.
Excuse me. One shortcake, please.
Yes, coming right up.
After buying the cake...
From there, he headed to Mt. Hattobi, 4.8 km away,
and arrived there around 6:00 p.m.
He called out to Igawa Harumi-san, who was on her way home from school.
He lured her into the deserted mountains, and killed her.
Taking a mere 30 minutes of time.
Around 6:35 p.m.
At this time... Matsumoto ran back.
He got on his bicycle and left.
A neighbor reported seeing him leaving on a bicycle.
He returned home around 6:50 p.m.
And made curry.
The girl returned home a little after 7:00 p.m.
That was the prosecution's assertion.
Curry?
But how could he make curry in just 10 minutes?
In addition, there were many inconsistencies between the defense and the prosecution's arguments.
Cherry-san introduced me to the lawyer who handled Matsumoto's trial, and I went to see him.
However, according to Cherry-san...
- Kimura-sensei. - Huh?
Asakawa-san is here.
I heard that Kimura was a lawyer with a deep hatred for the media.
Oh, I'm sorry for interrupting your meal. Should I come back?
No, go ahead.
I don't have much time.
Thank you.
- It's a mess, isn't it? - Oh, no.
I work on low-fee criminal cases, you know.
I have no choice but to go for quantity.
It's like a takoyaki shop.
Well, I guess that's about it.
The materials in the case file.
- Thank you very much. - Are there any other questions?
You've been in charge of this case right up to the appeals court, right?
- That's right. - Uhm...
What kind of person is Matsumoto-san from your point of view?
Yes, well... He's an ordinary old man.
He's not the paranoid sexual deviant the prosecutors say he is.
I didn't feel a trace of cruelty in him.
He is a decent middle-aged man who is a little bit timid.
So you do think he's innocent after all?
Yes, I have no doubts about that.
Matsumoto's confession was influenced by the mass media,
who falsely portrayed him as a pedophile...
Ah, you're following me so far?
Yes.
No doubt, it was coerced by the police, who were encouraged by the false accusations in the media.
Coercion?
You don't believe it?
"I can't believe that the Japanese police would do such a thing", right?
No.
Regarding cases of false accusations,
I've studied about it a little.
- A little? - Yes.
Hahahaha.
The powers that be, can easily crush those who are weak for the sake of their own convenience.
Poking over there, and poking over here.
Those most commonly chosen are those that are not likely to kick a fuss when suppressed.
They have no social power, no family,
and even if they shout, their voices are small.
In other words, people like Matsumoto-san are very convenient for them.
Furthermore, death row inmates are treated as if they are not even human beings.
Did you know that the death penalty in this country is carried out in no particular order and at no particular time?
It's always up to the big shots.
Somehow, they're often suddenly put together,
like taking out the trash.
Death row inmates are suddenly informed of their execution on the morning of the day of execution.
So for them, the morning is a terrifying time for them.
When the sound of the guards' footsteps, approaching from afar...
they wonder if today is the day.
Every morning, they tremble as they listen intently to that sound.
What's wrong?
Nothing, uhm...
I'm fine.
- Do you need some water? - Excuse me.
Are you all right?
Uhm, this...
Please ask Matsumoto-san to read this.
Their only son died.
They lived long themselves.
I can't imagine how hard it must have been for them.
Both my father and mother-in-law.
Hey, Taku.
Anyway, you should take it easy, okay?
But Mom...
That's why you fell in love with him, right?
About Dad... You'd think he was a great lawyer.
Haha. But he wasn't very good at it.
He took on all kinds of difficult cases that no one else would take.
He was fighting like crazy.
He didn't have to be that great.
I wish he hadn't died.
I wanted him to make more money.
I bought that house on the assumption that I would pay for everything from the beginning.
As a man, Dad wasn't very good.
That useless man! Hehehe
Anyway, Taku-chan...
Don't ever be like Dad,
I want you to earn money and live comfortably.
That's why I enrolled you into Meio school.
- Oh, excuse me. - Yes.
Can I have some red wine?
- Red wine? - Yes.
- Please wait a moment. - I want something stronger.
Most certainly.
This is Cape Rouge... How would you like it?
By the way, that Kishimoto Takuro...
has been staring at me a lot. I wonder why.
He seems to think I didn't notice him.
But his glare is unusually strong.
Even though I don't like it, I keep seeing it.
It's really annoying.
And then... I got a phone call.
- Do something about your eyes. - What?
So, what's going on?
I thought you were backing out.
You were so freaked out by Murai-san's threats that you said you didn't want to do it any more.
Well, that's true.
But I thought I'd give it one more try.
What?
I might be able to help out. I could do that.
- Help out? - Yes.
You know, the other day... Murai said,
if we pursue this case...
we might become an enemy of the state.
Are you really prepared for that?
- No, I'm not. - No?
Yes, I'm not.
I don't think I could win a fight against the power of the state.
But if Asakawa-san wants to fight...
Somehow,
I might be able to help.
You're not willing to do it, but you want to help?
Yes.
Is Kishimoto Takuro,
an idiot or what?
Or does it mean he's a stupidly nice guy?
I really don't know.
Still...
it's also true that it's better to have a lot of friends.
For now,
I asked him to recreate Matsumoto-san's movements on the day of the crime,
just as I did.
- Here you go. - Thank you.
Yes.
Ah. I arrived at 18:52.
Oh, at Matsumoto-san's house.
- Yeah. - But...
I'm convinced,
this schedule is impossible after all.
What makes you think that?
No, indeed, if I ride frantically from Mt. Hattobi, I can be home in 10 minutes.
But then the cake gets all messed up.
That's right. It was the same with me.
Matsumoto Yoshio
Sorry, I have to go.
What?
Dear Asakawa Ena.
I received your letter from the lawyer.
I am also very much looking forward to meeting you,
however, prisoners on death row are not allowed to see anyone other than family members and their lawyers.
Nevertheless, I would like to tell you what happened.
Please fill out your name and contact information.
- Who's that? - She's a relative.
I would never
have killed all those girls.
Matsumoto-san!
One morning, all of a sudden, the police raided my place.
Matsumoto Yoshio, right?
We want to talk to you about the murder of a junior high school girl.
What? Why...
You're under suspicion of murder, we need to talk to you!
Murder?
- You did it, didn't you! - Hey, wait a minute.
- Ah? Huh? - Wait a minute!
They told me they were taking me in as a murder suspect.
- Please don't do that. - You killed her, didn't you? That girl.
- Please don't do this. - Take him out!
You did it, didn't you?!
For three days and nights,
The detectives kept on threatening me.
If you just tell us what happened, you can go home.
"I did it."
Just say that.
Huh...
Huh? I don't know.
Your future...
I was yelled at, pushed around,
grabbed by the hair.
You did it, didn't you?
Over and over again.
"You did it, didn't you?"
Well, it must be hard for you,
If you admit it... life would be easier.
I was told life would be easier if I admitted it.
And so at last.
Ugh... Please forgive me.
I said "Please forgive me".
Please forgive me.
That was used in place of my confession.
Please forgive me.
I am a weak man.
I am a pathetic man.
However, I am by no means a murderer.
Yummy.
I thought the rainy season has ended.
Ah, you can sit anywhere around there.
Okay.
Did you just move here?
It's been five years.
What? Why is there nothing here?
Because I decluttered.
Eh?
Here you go. I made it according to the prosecutor's claims.
Alright.
Bon appétit.
How is it?
It's not good.
The potatoes are hard.
And the carrots are hard too.
I know, right?
If Mr. Matsumoto came home at 6:50 p.m.,
and from that time, washed, cut, fried the vegetables, and so on.
And Cherry-san came home after 7:00 p.m.
Cooking time was only 10 minutes or so.
It can't be good, can it?
Huh, I knew it. The claims were unreasonable.
Eh? You're not eating?
Yeah. I don't have an appetite.
That's not fair.
You should eat too, Asakawa-san.
Wow. This potato is seriously hard.
I've been canvassing the neighborhood since then,
but, I didn't get much useful information.
I guess the media was terrible, weren't they?
Do you still want to eat?
Yeah.
It's okay. Don't be so scared.
Curry is curry even if it goes bad.
It hasn't gone bad.
I'm sorry.
After doing all this ...
I'm starting to think that I might be suited for this kind of work.
Acting for the sake of justice, it feels really good, doesn't it?
You know...
The more nice things you say, the more false they sound.
I do?
You only speak out of your mouth.
The voice changes when someone is lying or when they are telling the truth.
That's why we practice enunciation first.
"The government is meeting today to discuss next year's budget."
compared to
"The government is meeting today to discuss next year's budget."
Sounds different, doesn't it?
Wow, that's impressive.
So, how do I do it?
"The government is meeting today"...
You don't have to master those little tricks.
Ahem. "The government is meeting today to discuss next year's budget."
Hahaha.
You just have to live a normal and proper life.
If you become a good person, your voice will sound good on its own.
Huh? Something changed in his expression.
So he doesn't think he's a good person?
Do you want a second helping?
Oh, no, thanks. I'm already full.
Kishimoto Takuro has a lot of things going on.
But for some reason
when I'm with him,
I am able to eat curry.
Ahh! Stop it!
Shut up! Ah!
I just lost consciousness out of nowhere.
Ah, it was a state of nothingness.
That's impressive.
You're still very popular, aren't you, Ebiten?
Rubber tights don't appear very often.
Oh, Hikari-chan, not likely!
- Eh? Eh? - Eh?
What did you say? You want to switch hosting duties with me?
What's going on?
Oh, no, excuse me.
- I want to continue for another 10 years with Ebiten-san. - 10 years?
Can you handle that long with me?
- Hahaha. - How about 11 years. 11 years.
11 years? You...
Good evening.
It was good seeing you at the restaurant the other day, but that guy had a lot of things to say after you left.
I saw that you were having dinner.
Ah...
It's OK if it's just the three of us with Kishimoto, it'll be more troublesome if it's just the two of us.
But I can't go to your house either, so I wanted to talk to you here.
I went back and read my notes from interviews at the time.
And I remembered something about that case.
There were eyewitness testimonies that were rather important
in the very early stages of the investigation.
What? What kind of testimony?
A middle school girl, believed to be the victim,
was walking with a young man with long hair.
A young man with long hair?
Play this.
- What's the password? - I haven't changed it.
She was walking into the mountains with a young, slender man with long hair.
I thought they might have been a couple, at the time.
They went into the mountains together.
They looked like they were very close, smiling and talking together.
Multiple people have witnessed this long-haired man in his twenties.
The police are investigating this lead, believing that he may be involved in some way.
This is... definitely not Matsumoto-san.
Matsumoto-san was a small 50-year-old man at the time.
And obviously, he didn't have long hair.
Up until a certain point, the police were investigating this man as the likely culprit.
But then they changed their mind and decided to focus on Matsumoto.
I guess these witness testimonies were left out of the investigation.
This...
man is the real killer?
Well, it's possible.
Do you want a drink?
Oh, no, I'll get it.
Huh? Is it sold out?
No, uhm... Let's go to my place after all.
Eh?
I took up so much of your valuable time,
I can't repay you with canned coffee.
Ah, did you manage to get a parking lot?
Yes, it's fine.
I'll make coffee.
Have a seat.
Did you throw it away? Everything.
- Yes, I did. - When?
I couldn't do it all at once.
I had to go through them little by little.
I think I got to this state about two months ago.
Hmm.
That sofa was nice, wasn't it?
It's just decorative. It was cheap anyway.
I see.
Decluttering, huh?
I guess I was a part of that, too.
What?
Decluttering. Well, that's understandable.
I wasn't sincere at all.
nor can I say I was faithful.
And above all, I was irresponsible.
When that picture appeared in a weekly magazine,
I should have thought of a way to protect you first.
As a man back then,
I was a real piece of work.
Even the sofa might have been better than me.
I...
didn't throw the sofa away because I was sick of it.
What disgusted me
wasn't the sofa
nor you.
It was myself.
People seem to think that I was ruined because of that picture.
But it's not true.
Long before that,
I was already ruined.
I was already ruined,
that's why they used those pictures and dropped me from the program.
And furthermore, I tried to impose myself on you.
Well, as for you being an unfaithful boyfriend,
I'm not going to deny that.
Haha...
You were the ace of the news department. You had potential.
Even if you were a bit of a womanizer,
even if you didn't really love me,
If I could have gotten you to propose to me
and we got married and I left the company.
I really thought it would be a win-win situation.
I thought I was pursuing happiness to the fullest.
After I lost everything,
I finally realized how crazy I was.
Thanks for the coffee.
Oh, yes.
I'll call you if I get any more information.
Thank you very much. Really.
Ah...
- You forgot this. - Sorry.
Good night.
What am I doing?
She was walking into the mountains with a young, slender man with long hair.
I thought they might have been a couple, at the time.
They went...
Right! That's the eyewitness testimony, wasn't it?
I've been wondering about it too.
If we can prove this man is the real culprit,
Matsumoto-san will be released?
That's right. He'll be acquitted for sure.
They pretty much overlooked the eyewitness testimony.
As soon as Matsumoto-san came into the picture,
the media declared him a pedophile and that he did it!
That's all they would make a fuss about.
It's really unforgivable.
The media was irresponsible in their coverage.
Ah... I'm sorry.
It is no wonder that you do not watch TV news programs any more.
Well... even if you put it that way...
I do watch your news program once in a while.
Taiyo TV's... Uhm... News...
- News 8. - Oh, that's right, that's right.
I haven't been on it recently.
I was dropped two years ago.
Oh, I see.
- Do you want a drink? - Oh, I'm fine.
I joined Taiyo TV in 2008.
Oh.
I wanted to be an anchor.
But I didn't have any money so I studied on my own.
After I joined the company, I worked very hard to get through to upper management.
And after three years with the company,
I became a co-anchor of "News 8".
I remember, it was really something.
It was said that you were the biggest newcomer in a long time.
Hahaha.
I was 24 years old at the time, and a little desperate to make myself look as big as possible.
No matter how hard things get,
no matter how confusing the world may be,
those people would firmly stand up straight,
and convey the correct truth.
I wanted to become such a trusted anchor like that.
But... I learned
that such a dream would never come true in my lifetime.
I became a co-anchor in 2010.
Six years from that April, when I stepped down,
I found myself wondering
how much of the truth was really there...
I felt so bitter, and painful.
I felt as if I was suffocating.
I am now
being punished,
I believe.
I understand that you use an explosion valve to reduce the internal pressure, but what are the risks?
No explosion problems at Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant?
Magnitude 8.8 Japan's largest earthquake. Death toll over 1,000
Well, the worst thing that happened was that the hangar was destroyed,
so I guess it was a success in the sense that it was prevented.
There were no problems.
With the aim of hosting the Olympic and Paralympic Games in 2020,
the Organizing Committee made a final presentation
at the IOC General Assembly in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Final Speech for Olympic Bid by Prime Minister Abe [Nuclear power plants under control]
In the presentation, Prime Minister Abe
addressed concerns about the contaminated water problem
at the Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant.
Saying that the situation was under control and
Tokyo is not damaged in any way...
The decision to host
the 2020 Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games in Tokyo has been made.
It has been 56 years since Tokyo has hosted the Olympics.
Wow! Yay!
Yes, the decision to host the 2020 Tokyo Olympics
will give further impetus to the recovery from the earthquake and tsunami,
and the people have high expectations.
Everyone, aren't you glad that the Olympics have been decided?
Yay!
What? No way.
There's no way it's the culprit.
No, but seriously. I really felt something like a presence.
It was a boar, right? It must have been a boar.
I guess so.
I'm going to get some water. Do you want anything?
Can I? I'll have some tea then.
Ah...
Taiyo TV Breaking News
3 death row inmates to be executed
Did you know that the death penalty in this country is carried out in no particular order and at no particular time?
Somehow, they're often suddenly put together,
like taking out the trash.
♪ [Mirage] ♪
♪ A profile struggling to reach the moon that will never be reached ♪ ♪ 届きはしない月に手を伸ばし もがく横顔 ♪
♪ Building in the shape of desire, it's a distorted waltz ♪ ♪ 欲望の形をしたビルディング 歪なワルツだ ♪
♪ There are things that no one can say, and they're blocking it out ♪ ♪ 誰にだって口に出せないことがあって 塞いでいる ♪
♪ The beast bit off the lead that I managed to get ♪ ♪ 自分で着けたリードを噛み切った獣 ♪
♪ Finish me off with a heart that's aching for you ♪ ♪ あなたに焦がれる胸を仕留めてくれ ♪
♪ Let's make vows in a place where it's lit ♪ ♪ 灯された場所で誓い交わそう ♪
♪ The heathen who destroys himself in a fire that's too strong ♪ ♪ あまりに強い火に身を滅ぼす異教徒 ♪
♪ Do not answer to fate. ♪ ♪ 運命に返事はしないでよ ♪
♪ There will be a judgment ♪ ♪ きっと下される裁き ♪
♪ Can't stop the fire ♪
♪ I want to believe. ♪ ♪ 信じたいんだ ♪