World Urban Legend

 Hakamada Iwao (born March 10, 1936) is a former professional boxer from Japan who was convicted of murdering a family of four and committing arson in Shimizu City, Shizuoka Prefecture, in 1966, while working at a miso factory. He was sentenced to death in 1980. Although Hakamada initially confessed to the crime after his arrest, he later claimed that the confession was coerced under torture and maintained his innocence from the beginning of his trial. Hakamada's sister, Hideko, advocated for his innocence and began seeking a retrial in 1981. However, the Supreme Court rejected her petition in March 2008 after 27 years. But in April of the same year, a second retrial petition was filed, and in the course of the retrial, it was revealed that the DNA from bloodstains found on the clothing allegedly belonging to the perpetrator did not match Hakamada’s. The court also pointed out evidence tampering by the authorities. On March 27, 2014, Hakamada’s death sentence was suspended, and a r...

 On July 25, 1991, a child disappearance case occurred in Funahikimachi, Fukushima Prefecture, Japan. This case is considered one of the "three major unresolved child disappearance cases" in Japan. It remains one of the few cases where a strong suspect is identified, though it remains unsolved. On that day, the house of Kenichi Ishii, a construction worker, was filled with his parents, wife Yoshiko, two sons Kento and Leo, daughter Mai, Kenichi's niece, her boyfriend K, and two daughters of Yoshiko’s friends. In the afternoon, Kenichi’s parents went to karaoke, and Mai and the other two children spent time playing games in K’s room. At around 10:30 PM, Yoshiko entered the children’s room to cover them with a blanket. Then, she went to the second-floor bathroom, where she saw K leaving the house. She didn’t think much of it and continued with her bath. Afterward, she heard a sound of a door closing and someone climbing the stairs, but she didn’t investigate further. She fi...

 The murder of Professor Ikegashi Hitoshi in Japan in 1991 is closely linked to his translation of Salman Rushdie’s controversial work The Satanic Verses . The incident occurred on July 11, 1991, when Ikegashi was killed by an unknown person in front of an elevator at the University of Tsukuba. According to the police investigation, blood of type O and footprints from Chinese-made kung fu shoes were found at the scene, but no decisive evidence to identify the perpetrator was discovered. At the time, the Iranian government had issued a fatwa calling for the killing of Rushdie and anyone associated with his book. Given this, some speculated that the murder could have been carried out by an Iranian special agent or an Islamic fundamentalist terrorist. Similar attacks on translators of the book had also occurred in other countries. However, Ikegashi was not a Muslim and had a deep understanding of Islam, having lived in Iran. This led some to believe that the murder might have been car...

 In December of 1968, a seemingly ordinary event in a Japanese city would unfold into one of the most dramatic and mysterious heists in history. It all started with a threatening letter delivered to the manager of the Kokubunji branch of the Japan Trust Bank, warning that the manager’s house would be blown up unless 3 million yen was delivered by 5 PM the following day. Initially, the police thought it was a prank, but they soon realized they were wrong. On December 10, 1968, at around 9:30 AM, a cash transport vehicle loaded with 300 million yen for year-end bonuses departed from the Japan Trust Bank’s Kokubunji branch. At the time, these transport vehicles were nothing like the specialized, armored cars used today; they were just ordinary sedans. As the transport vehicle approached the Fuchu Prison, a man riding a motorcycle, dressed as a police officer, appeared and claimed that a bomb had been planted in the vehicle. He demanded the crew evacuate. The supposed police officer pr...

  Pokémon Shock Incident (Pokémon Electric Shock Incident) On Tuesday, December 16, 1997, the 38th episode of the Pokémon series titled "Dennō Senshi Porygon" (Cyber Soldier Porygon) was broadcast on six local TV stations in Japan, including TV Tokyo. During the airing, numerous viewers suffered from seizures, leading it to be recognized as the most significant TV-related seizure incident in the world, even being included in the Guinness Book of World Records. This event is most commonly known as the "Pokémon Shock" incident, but it has also been referred to as "Porygon Shock" or simply the "Porygon Incident," after the title of the episode. Other names include "Porygon Flash" and variations, such as "Pikachu Shock" or "Pikachu Flash" among those who recognize that Porygon was not the direct cause of the incident. Episode Summary: The episode follows Ash and his friends, who arrive at the Pokémon Center to help Pikac...