Around noon on June 1, 2004, Natsumi Tsuji, an 11-year-old student at Okubo Elementary School in Sasebo, Japan, assassinated her classmate and friend Satomi Mitarai, a 12-year-old student at the same school.
A group of Internet users gave Tsuji the nickname Nevada Tan, which he still uses today. Japanese officials first refused to reveal the identity of the young woman, referring to her simply as “Girl A.”
The Tragedy
Natsumi threw a box cutter inside her book bag before heading to school the next day.
Around lunchtime, Natsumi lured Satomi into an empty classroom while the rest of the students and instructors were out to eat their sandwiches. She informed Satmoni that she had a new game she wanted to demonstrate to her.
Natsumi invited the young lady inside the room and instructed her to take a seat on a chair. Natsumi then informed Satomi that she was going to die once she had agreed.
At first glance, Satomi assumed Natsumi was making fun of her until she abruptly covered her eyes, took a knife from her pocket, and cut her neck. After grabbing her wrist and slashing her, Natsumi left the girl to bleed to death in the unattended classroom as the rest of the class looked on.
Natsumi was covered in blood when she returned to her next class, where frightened classmates and professors watched in disbelief. Satomi’s corpse was discovered in the classroom by a teacher, who alerted the authorities.
Motive
Natsumi was allegedly a joyful youngster who excelled on the basketball squad and has a high IQ, according to reports (143.) Her passion for basketball, on the other hand, outweighed her interest in her studies, and her grades started to suffer. Natsumi’s mother pushed her to leave the basketball team since her grades had deteriorated, allowing her to devote more time to her academics.
Natsumi was depressed and dissatisfied with her situation now that she could no longer play basketball. She had a strained relationship with her mother and her school pals. Her academic performance continued to deteriorate, possibly even more so now than when she was a member of the basketball team.
While at home, she tended to spend most of her time in her bedroom, surfing the Internet for leisure and mostly watching anime and frightening movies. She also loved playing online games, with one, in particular, capturing her interest.
Battle Royale, a game in which students murder one other while on an isolated island, was her personal favorite. She grew so captivated with this game that she decided to develop her own website where she could create horror animations of her own design and style. Satomi teased her and called her “fat” and “pretentious” on more than one occasion when playing games with her. Satomi declined to accept Natsumi’s request for an apology.
Natsumi was overcome with the desire to murder her buddy right then and there, and she started agonizing over the details of how she would go about committing the crime. She considered the young lady to be a friend. Satomi had the audacity to speak to her in such a manner.
Following the conclusion of the case
The Tochigi prefecture reform school sentenced Natsumi to two years, but a psychiatric examination resulted in her being sentenced to additional two years in the school. Following the conclusion of her review by psychiatrists in 2008, she was granted her parole. It is not possible to get up-to-date information.
This case aroused debate in Japan about the right age at which children should be held liable for their misdeeds. Many people questioned if the legal age of prosecution should be decreased once again, since it had previously been reduced from 16 to 14 years of age.
