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Tokyo Attacker Put Warnings Online

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The New York Times

Published: June 10, 2008

TOKYO - The final, chilling posting read, "It's time."

In the hours before a 25-year-old man went on a killing rampage in central Tokyo on Sunday, he posted a series of messages on an online bulletin board from his cell phone, the authorities said Monday.

The attacker, identified by the police as Tomohiro Kato, an auto parts worker, described his intention of using his vehicle and knife to kill people in the central Tokyo district of Akihabara, a center for electronics and a magnet for fans of Japanese anime and manga comics.

The first message to the thread, titled "I will kill people in Akihabara," was sent at 5:21 a.m. on Sunday. In ensuing posts, Kato described leaving his home just west of Tokyo, heading to the capital and worrying that rain could hamper his plans. He wrote about arriving in Akihabara at 11:45 a.m. The final post was at 12:10 p.m.

Twenty minutes later, he plowed his 2-ton rental truck into a crowd of pedestrians before stabbing passers-by with a survival knife. Seven people died and 11 were injured.

According to reports in the Japanese news media, Kato told the police that he had grown tired of life, "hated the world," and had gone to Akihabara to kill people.

The killings stunned a country that has long enjoyed low crime rates but where a series of random stabbings have recently occurred.

On Monday, the government sought to impose tighter controls over large knives and provide better security in public places. In an emergency meeting, the ruling coalition considered limiting access to knives like the one used in the stabbing, which had a 5-inch blade.

"Obviously, the suspect possessed the knife without a legitimate reason," Chief Cabinet Secretary Nobutaka Machimura said. "I think we have to seriously consider what we can do to step up the restrictions."

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.

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