Gen Sekine

was a Japanese dog breeder and serial killer who, together with his common-law wife , murdered at least four clients in Kumagaya, Saitama Prefecture, between April and August 1993. Both were sentenced to death for their crimes, but Sekine died on death row prior to execution.

Early life and accomplices Gen Sekine Gen Sekine was born on 2 January 1942 in Chichibu, Saitama Prefecture. After graduating high school, he worked at a pachinko parlor and later a Chinese restaurant in his hometown. One night, the restaurant burned down in a mysterious fire that also killed its owner; rumours persisted that Sekine had killed the owner and set the fire to cover his tracks, but this was never proven. When he was in his twenties, Sekine started breeding dogs, later earning celebrity status in the industry for popularizing the Alaskan Malamute breed in Japan.

Sekine was adept at predicting human behavior, and many were thus drawn to his unique humor and speaking skills. On the other hand, many of Sekine's peers avoided involving themselves too deeply with him due to his business practices, propensity to threaten customers and his friendship with local yakuza. In addition, Sekine was a pathological liar who made many boastful claims to not only acquaintances and customers, but also to media interviewers with the aim of advertising his store. One such lie concerned his missing little finger, which he claimed had been bitten off by a lion in Africa; in reality, it had been cut off by members of the yakuza for failing to pay debts.

According to accomplice Eikō Yamazaki, Sekine followed a set of five rules which he called his "murder philosophy":

1. Kill those who are not good for the world 2. Do not kill for insurance purposes, as you will get caught 3. Kill the greedy 4. It is important not to shed blood 5. The most important thing is to make the body disappear

Yamazaki further claimed that Sekine often bragged in private about committing the perfect crime, that he would never get caught and "if there was an Olympic event for killing, [he] would get the gold medal." Despite his enthusiastic and boastful attitude, Sekine was often described as small-minded and nervous, which was reflected with his obsession to constantly get rid of any incriminating evidence. Yamazaki said that while he was always frightened, Sekine was confident that he would never be caught.

Hiroko Kazama Hiroko Kazama was born on February 19, 1957, in Kumagaya. She was raised by her father, a childcare worker and later a real estate agent. A quiet but strong woman who loved big dogs, Kazama was studying to work as a land surveyor to help her father financially. In 1983, she visited the Africa Kennel where she met Sekine, and the pair married not long after.

Both partners had been previously married (Sekine having married three times before; Kazama was divorced with two children), so in order to show her devotion for him, Kazama carved a dragon tattoo on her back as a sign of their unity, as opposed to his previous wives, who had tattooed his name. Some theories suggest that Sekine had married Kazama due to her rich father's inheritance, while others suggest it was for her ability to present herself at dog shows and manage the kennel's finances. While both spouses engaged in infidelity, prompted by Sekine physically abusing Kazama and her children, they nevertheless supported each other in overseeing their business.

In order to prevent Sekine from wasting money, Kazama faked their divorce and started living as his common-law wife, which allowed for her to be appointed the president of the Africa Kennel. While on the surface it appeared to be a joint-stock agreement, the actual management was supervised by Sekine, while Kazama dealt exclusively with the finances.

Eikō Yamazaki Eikō Yamazaki was born in Toyama Prefecture in January 1956. A bulldog breeder living out of a remodeled freight car in Katashina, Gunma Prefecture, he first heard of Sekine after seeing him participate in a dog show. When he visited the Africa Kennel to learn about Sekine's management philosophy, he was unexpectedly invited to work there as an executive. However, in reality, Yamazaki became Sekine's driver and unwilling accomplice.

Murders

Sekine's modus operandi consisted of dismembering the victims' corpses, which he called "making the body disappear." When conducting this procedure, Yamazaki claimed that Sekine found it "interesting and fun."

Akio Kawasaki Akio Kawasaki, a 39-year-old executive of an industrial waste treatment company in Gyōda, befriended Sekine after visiting the Africa Kennel to buy a dog. At the time, Kawasaki was inclined by his brother to expand his business ventures into dog breeding, and so purchased two Rhodesian Ridgebacks for ¥11 million. While driving on a deserted road along the Arakawa embankment, Wakui began convulsing violently, enough to crack the car's windshield, before dying. Unable to arrest Sekine for the murders due to insufficient evidence, the Second Investigation Division considered arresting him on fraud charges relating to the construction of the new kennel; the idea was ultimately abandoned.

On 26 January 1994, serial killer Yoshinori Ueda was arrested for murdering several dog breeders in Osaka. Although unrelated to the case, rumors spread that similar cases were occurring in Saitama Prefecture, and in mid-February, the media focused their attention on the Africa Kennel on a daily basis. While Sekine insisted on his innocence, the victims' families continued to accuse him. However, since police had no evidence at this time, their accusations were considered baseless.

On 22 September, the Saitama Prefectural Police arrested an acquaintance of Sekine, a former Japan Ground Self-Defense Force (JGSDF) officer from Ōmama, on unrelated fraud charges. It was suggested by the media that the man might have known something about Sekine, and during his interrogation, the acquaintance admitted to being somewhat involved in earlier disappearances and hinted at Sekine's responsibility for the more recent cases. Yamazaki was questioned by police on 17 October, but he denied any involvement. After he fled with his second wife, police issued an arrest warrant for her on charges of embezzling ¥50 million from a construction company. As a result, Sekine and Kazama were arrested on murder and concealment of a corpse on 5 January 1995, with Yamazaki following three days later on the same charges.

Trials In addition to the extremely scant physical evidence, the subsequent criminal trial was prolonged due to Sekine and Kazama blaming each other for the killings, while the prosecution argued that all three parties were equally to blame. In addition, Yamazaki, who had given full confessions at the investigation stage, had cooperated willingly and had even struck a plea deal with prosecutors, refused to testify at the trial stage.

Initial trial On 7 July 1995, Yamazaki's trial was held at Urawa District Court (present-day Saitama District Court), and the facts of the indictment were generally acknowledged. Subsequently, on 24 July, Sekine and Kazama were brought to trial in the same court, with the former pleading no contest. Sekine's lawyer criticized the prosecution for not disclosing evidence or affidavits, Kazama claimed that she was not involved in the murders or dismemberments, stating that Sekine had coerced her into disposing of the evidence after the fact. In the Kawasaki case, Kazama admitted that she had driven his car to Tokyo with Yamazaki but denied knowing that it was his or why she was doing it in the first place. Both later appealed to the Supreme Court of Japan, but on 5 June 2009, Justice Yuki Furuta dismissed their appeal, and on 22 June their death sentences were finalized.

Possible additional murders In 1984, at least three men and women connected to Sekine disappeared in Chichibu and the surrounding areas. Saitama Prefectural Police searched for their bodies, but none were ever located. Authorities also inspected the old kennel in Kumagaya, where the officer claimed the bodies were dismembered, but nothing of note was found. Despite this, Kazama hinted in court about the missing yakuza, suggesting that she at very least knew about the case.

Yamazaki later speculated that Sekine had killed others before, judging from his expertise and dexterity at dismembering the bodies. In a book giving his account of the case, he noted that the yakuza and the truck driver who had disappeared in 1984 were friends of Sekine, and that the latter had a weird ritual of wrapping "venison" around bamboo sticks. He also said that Sekine had once told him that he belonged to the Takada Group, an organized crime group affiliated with the Inagawa-kai.

Sekine's death After their convictions, both Sekine and Kazawa were sent to await execution at the Tokyo Detention House. In November 2016, Sekine fell ill and had to be rushed for treatment in the prison hospital.