Summary of the Decision by the Tokyo No. 4 Committee for the Inquest of Prosecution 2010 Case # 15 (Petition), Tokyo No. 4 Committee for the Inquest of Prosecution Criminal charges written on the petition: capture, confinement, and injury; attempt of compulsion Criminal charges on which prosecution had made decisions: capture, confinement, and injury; attempt of compulsion Date of decision by the Committee: October 6, 2010 Summary of the Decision by the Committee Petitioner: Toru Goto Petitioner’s Attorney at Law: Nobuya Fukumoto Suspect (1): Keiko Goto Suspect (2): Takashi Goto Suspect (3): Youko Goto Suspect (4): Masako Aoyagi (formerly Masako Goto) Suspect (5): Yasutomo Matsunaga Suspect (6): Takashi Miyamura The Prosecutor who had made the non-prosecution decisions: Toshiyuki Ito Prosecuting Prosecutor, Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office 　 Upon petition filed by the petitioner, the Committee reviewed propriety of the prosecutor’s decisions not to indict the case concerning charges of capture, confinement, and injury and attempt of compulsion on the suspects (2009 Cases #2266, #2267, #2268, #2269, #2270, and #2271, Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office), and decided as follows. Outlines of the Decision by the Committee Non-indictment decisions of all of the charges on all of the suspects are appropriate. Reasons for the Decision by the Committee 1. Outlines of the Accusations: The suspects etc., in conspiracy and in attempt to compel the petitioner to leave the Holy Spirit Association for the Unification of World Christianity (hereinafter referred to as the “Unification Church”) by means of capture and confinement, captured the petitioner at Naomi Goto’s house in Nishitokyo City, Tokyo on around September 11, 1995 by holding him at the both underarms to disable him to move, made him to board a van, drove him to a condominium unit in Niigata prefecture, and confined him in the unit by disabling him to escape until around the end of December, 1997; then after that, confined him in Unit #804 at Ogikubo Flower Home in Suginami ward, Tokyo until around February 10, 2008; by these means, caused him to suffer generalized muscle weakness, dystrophy, anemia, and other injuries; and made attempts to compel him to abandon his religious belief by intimidation which were unsuccessful due to his repudiation. 2 Reason for the Prosecutor’s Decision Not to Indict the Suspects Lack of evidence for all of the charges 3 Results of the Committee’s Review (1) Capture and Confinement a. From Naomi Goto’s House to Unit #607 at Palace Mansion Tamon According to the petitioner’s statement, on the date stated in “Outlines of Accusations” above, the petitioner was held by Naomi Goto (hereinafter referred to as “Naomi”) and the suspect Takashi Goto (hereinafter referred to as “Takashi”) at the both underarms, almost dragged to the outside of the house, placed onboard a van being tucked between them, rejected going to toilet off the car, forced to use a portable toilet onboard, kept being held by the two persons from the both sides until the van reached Palace Mansion Tamon, almost dragged to and into Unit #607. On the contrary, according to the suspects etc.,, the suspects etc. had a family discussion with the petitioner for 1.5 to 2 hours because they would not be making communication if they would forcibly take the petitioner with them, and that the petitioner consented to go with them albeit reluctant, so that they went to Palace Mansion Tamon with the petitioner, and that they did neither captured nor confined the petitioner. The results of the committee’s review are as follows. According to the petitioner, the petitioner does not remember whether he has put his shoes on or not when he has been dragged out of Naomi’s house. The distance between the house and the van was slightly less than 10 meters. If he had been dragged as he walked such a distance almost bare-footed, it would be only natural for him to remember such an experience.. Since the petitioner does not have such memory, we consider that he had his shoes on. Hence, the petitioner’s claim that he has refused to go with the suspects etc.and has been dragged to the van is doubtful. Naomi’s house was situated in a quiet residential area and was located off a public street at the end of a private blind alley stretching less than 10 meters with three other houses on the both sides of the alley. Just out of the private alley was a public street with rows of residential houses facing it. As it was around 9 o’clock at night when the petitioner left Naomi’s house, he could have cried loud for help but he did not. According to the both “A” who was waiting in the van and “B” who was in Naomi’s house, the petitioner approached the van on foot in an ordinarily manner and got on the van by himself, and that the petitioner walked away the same after he got off the van. As for the petitioner’s claim that he was kept tucked between two people on the van, according to the suspects etc., the suspects etc. were not aware of such. Also, considering the number of people on board the van, it is conceived that someone in anyway had to be in the center seat. According to the suspects’ words, the portable toilet had always been ready on the van because of Naomi’s weak bladder, the petitioner did not refuse to the use the portable toilet, they had taken non-stop drives to Niigata before, it was not their first non-stop trip to Niigata, and it was late at night so that they wanted to arrive in Niigata as early as possible. These words of the suspects cannot be concluded as mendacious. The van arrived at Palace Mansion Tamon at around 2:30 in the morning, during the very quiet time of a day. If the petitioner had cried loud for help, many people would have noticed the incident. However, the petitioner did not call for help. b. Unit #607 at Palace Mansion Tamon According to the petitioner, there was an instrument to lock the front door of the unit to make the petitioner unable to open it from inside, all the windows of the unit were fixed with window stoppers and did not open, and the petitioner was kept under watch by family members, and so that petitioner could not escape from the unit. According to the suspects etc., the family members were just living together, they did not keep the petitioner under watch, there were ordinary door locks and ordinary window stoppers, and the suspects et. al. did not conduct any special work on the lock and window stoppers. The results of the committee’s review are as follows. The petitioner lived at the unit from September 12, 1995 until June 22, 1997 when Naomi passed away. The petitioner’s recorded oral statement reads “As the windows could not be opened from inside, I thought the front door should have a lock to prevent opening from inside.” The petitioner has not seen the door lock, and his claim is merely based on his speculation. The ones who were living with the petitioner at the condominium unit were Naomi, the suspect Keiko Goto (hereinafter refereed to “Keiko”), the suspect Youko Goto (hereinafter referred to as “Youko”), and the suspect Masako Aoyagi (hereinafter referred to as “Masako”). Takashi visited the unit only several times per month. In January, 1996, as Youko’s healthdeclined, she began to live at her family home nearby. She had a part time job as well. In March, 1996, Naomi was hospitalized due to cardiopathy and did not return to this condominium even after he was discharged from the hospital, returning to his family home instead. In March, 1997, due to Naomi’s hospitalization, Keiko returned back to her family house and to take care of him (she had begun to be absent from the condominium unit frequently to take care of Naomi as early as March, 1996). Although Youko occasionally visited the condominium unit, the petitioner was only with Masako for much of the time after March, 1996. The petitioner himself also has admitted such situations. The petitioner’s hand and feet were not bound, he could move freely, was 182 centimeters tall, and weighed 65 to 70 kilograms. On the other hand, Keiko was 148 centimeters tall and weighed 36 kilograms, Takashi was 173 centimeters tall and weighed 63 kilograms, Youko was 158 centimeters tall and weighed 50 kilograms, and Masako was 153 centimeters tall and weighed 39 kilograms. The petitioner’s physical strength was overwhelmingly superior to the three women, and it truly wolud not have been difficult for the petitioner to escape from the condominium unit if he had the intention to do so. As the women had to go out for shopping to buy groceries etc., they did not always stay in the condominium unit, and when they were in the room, they had to clean the rooms and do the laundry etc., and it should not have been difficult for the petitioner to find a chance to escape from the unit. c. Transfer from Palace Mansion Tamon to Ogikubo Palace Mansion According to the petitioner, the petitioner could not escape from the scene during transfer from Palace Mansion Tamon to Ogikubo Palace Mansion because he had been surrounded by people, albeit no material force was exercised. The suspects etc. deny these claims. Results of the committee’s review are as follows. Upon departing Palace Mansion Tamon to make the final visit with Naomi, the petitioner attired and got ready by himself and got on the car by himself. According to the petitioner, he left his wallet and driver’s license behind because of his intension to return back to Palace Mansion Tamon. Taking all of these facts into consideration, the petitioner’s claim of his own intension to escape on the day of the final visit with his father is doubtful. d. Unit #605 of Ogikubo Place Mansion According to the petitioner, the petitioner could not escape from Unit #605 because a special lock had been installed on the front door, and because he was kept under watch by the suspects etc. According to the suspects etc, there were only ordinary locks on the door and windows, the suspects etc. did not work on these locks at all, and they did not keep the petitioner under their watch. Results of the committee’s review are as follows. The petitioner’s recorded oral statement reads “When I went to the toilet, I evaded my family’s attention and sneaked open the curtains and saw the entrance hall. I thought a feel that I may have seen a lock with numbers there.” The petitioner has not confirmed how the front door had been locked, and his claim is based on a mere speculation. The petitioner lived in this condominium unit from September 22 until the end of December. The family members living with the petitioner were Keiko, Takashi, Youko, and Masako. Among them, Keiko stayed at their family home for the first one month in order to take care of the aftermath of the funeral etc., and Takashi was out for work during daytime and also only spent the half of his nonwork time at the condominium unit and the rest at his home in Saitama. In the daytime, Takashi was absent, only two women remained in the condominium unit when one of the three women went out for shopping etc. The petitioner move about act freely. Taking all of these facts into consideration, it is doubtful if this situation could be called confinement. e. Transfer from Ogikubo Place Mansion to Unit #804 at Ogikubo Flower Home According to the petitioner, the petitioner could not escape from the scene during transfer from Palace Mansion Tamon to Ogikubo Palace Mansion because he was kept under watch by the suspects and unfamiliar men albeit no material force was exercised. According to the suspects etc., the petitioner had consented to move to Ogikubo Flower Home; three friends of Takashi joined to help prevent the Unification Church’s possible attempt to retake the petitioner back to their hands, but it was not to help prevent the petitioner to escape from the scene; although cars were used for transfer to Ogikubo Flower Home, they were parked at a location so far from the condominium so that everyone had to walk to the condominium from there; the suspects etc. did not surround the petitioner as they walked into the condominium unit, they walked just as ordinary family members would do; and there were passers-by on the street while walking to the condominium so that the petitioner could have escaped from the scene if he intended to do so, but he neither showed any indication to escape nor took any action to call for help. Results of the committee’s review are as follows During the moving, Keiko, Takashi, Youko, Masako and three other men were at present. However, unless they bind the petitioner in some way, even if the four family members had surrounded the petitioner, it must have been impossible to prevent the petitioner to run away. The men were just standing in front of the condominiums and did not accompany the petitioner inside. f. Unit #804 of Ogikubo Flower Home According to the petitioner, the doorknob of the front door of the condominiumu unit was chained and padlocked so that the door could not be opened from inside; the petitioner were kept under watch by the suspects etc. and could not escape from the unit; the petitioner made a series of fierce actions to get out of the unit during one month in February, 2001 and was prevented by the suspects etc. by force. The suspects etc. also admit that they placed a padlock to shorten the door chain, replaced the regular sliding window latches with lockable ones, and replaced the regular doorknob of the door between the entrance hall and living room with a lockable one. The padlock was placed before moving into the unit, and although the time of its removal is unclear, it was removed before Golden Week holidays in May, 1998 at the latest. The reason for using the padlock was to prevent the Unification Church to come into the unit to take the petitioner back into their hands. The suspects etc. had heard that the Unification Church members would use a chain cutter and/or other equipment to open doors and step into residential units to take their members away from their parents etc. The reason for not using a padlock at other condominiums was that the suspects etc. thought the Unification Church could not locate their whereabouts because nobody other than family members came in and out these condominiums. They knew that the Unification Church members would follow pastor(s) to locate their members. On the other hand, Ogikubo Flower Home was located only five-minute walking distance away from Ogikubo Church of the Unification Church, the church members would easily follow the suspect Miyamura and locate the petitioner, so that the risk of having the petitioner taken back by the Unification Church was high. According to the suspects etc., doorknobs of the door between the entrance hall and the living room had been replaced from the end of 2000 to February 2001; and this was for Takashi to use the space as his private room to concentrate on his work, and the doorknob was replaced back to the original one after Takashi retired from his job. According further to the suspects etc., the hassle in February, 2001 was not due to the petitioner’s protest against confinement; the family members refrained from speaking to him for a while because of his overly insincere attitude, and he, as the result, became irritated, raised his voice, and broke Shouji (sliding paper-screen panels) with woodenframes, Fusuma (thick sliding paper panels) etc. in rampage; the suspects etc. tried to repress the rampage by saying that it would be nuisance to the neighbors but the petitioner did not stop so that they once covered the petitioner’s mouth with a Zabuton (a floor cushion) or a towel; the petitioner neither have said that he wanted to go outside the unit nor tried to get to the entrance hall at all; in around 2004, many times, Youko together with Masako took the petitioner’s hands and tried to drag him out to leave the unit, but the petitioner kept sitting immobile refusing to budge, at all, and they had been distressed over how they could handle the petitioner who showed no intention of leaving the unit and kept himself inside as if to withdraw himself from the outside world. Results of the committee’s review are as follows. The suspects’ claim that the front door lock was to prevent the Unification Church members to come in and seize the petitioner back cannot be denied as unreasonable, as there actually had been cases where the church members followed pastors to locate the residences of other members, destroyed chain locks on the doors, and broke into the residences. The petition reads that the Unification Church cannot take any rescue measures unless it gets to know who is confined at where. However, in consideration with the church’s organized structure, it is not unreasonable for the suspects to believe that it should not be difficult for the church to find out who is living at where. The suspects’ claim concerning replacement of the original doorknob with lockable one matches to the timing of Takashi’s retirement and cannot be denied as mendacious. Those who lived with the petitioner in the condominium unit from the end of December 1998 until February, 2008 when the petitioner was made to leave from there, were Keiko, Takashi, Youko, and Masako. Youko’s health declined and stayed back at her home from around spring of 1998 until the end of 1999, and meanwhile she visited the condominium as frequently as two to three days per week; was hospitalized for three weeks in March, 2002; began to work part-time in May, 2002 so that she only visited the condominium every once in a while; and after around February, 2004, she began to live with the petitioner. Takashi lived with the petitioner after he quit his job in January, 2001 until March, 2004 when he found a new job; during this period, he went back to home at least once per week, went out to a library or somewhere and was absent from te unit from time to time; for one to two years after he began to work again in March, 2004, Takashi did not make any visit to the condominium and did not see the petitioner at all. Consequently, the petitioner was living mostly with Keiko and Masako alone, and whenever one of the two women was out for shopping etc., there remained only one other woman and the petitioner alone. Keiko had been consulting with an internist, an orthopedics, an ophthalmologist etc. at clinics and also visiting a gym, so that there were quite a number of opportunities where only two people were in the condominium unit including the petitioner himself. Repairmen, workmen, and other persons had come into the condominium unit for maintenance checkouts and other purposes including installation of air-conditioning units, replacement of water heating units, cleaning of water distributing pipes, and works on exterior walls. However, the petitioner had never called for their help or attempted to escape from the condominium unit during their visit. According to the petitioner, the petitioner had suspected possible collaborative relations between those visitors and the suspects. However, the petitioner just kept this notion to himself. Considering on the fact that he did not take any action at all not even for once, it is doubtful if he truly had such a notion in his mind. Granting that the petitioner’s actions in February, 2001 were made us his protest, why it took place only during the one-month period, why only when Takashi was at the condominium unit, why not when the petitioner was only with a woman/women i.e. the more effective moment to make the protest, and why not during quiet times after everyone had gone to sleep. In addition, if he had the will to escape from the condominium, it must have been important for him to know where he was. However, according to the petitioner himself, he only knew where he had been only after he was made to leave the unit. Although he could have easily learned his own where-abouts by checking delivered mails, receipts of newspaper subscription, utility-meter slips etc., there is no indication of such attempt by him in the records. According to the suspects, although the petitioner indeed fasted in 2004, 2005, and in April, 2006, fasting are conducted by the Unification Church members that is, in a general term, something like pledging to do something in making a wish; although the reason for the first fasting by the petitioner is unclear, Youko’s reprimand to the petitioner about his overly loud callout voice for his training had turned into an argument, and then he began to fast; the second fasting began when the petitioner’s demand for Hangul (Korean)language textbooks was denied; the third fasting began when his demand for notebooks was denied; and none of the three fasting was in protest against confinement. These claims by the suspects are comprehensible. According to the petitioner, based on the teachings of the Unification Church, for the petitioner, his family members were for him to outreach and proselytize, and in addition, the petitioner had a wish to dispel his family’s misunderstanding and bring salvation to them because Takashi, Youko, and Masako former Unification Church members had betrayed the church founder Reverend Moon, so that they were demned. It appears that the petitioner remained in the condominium unit because of such sentiments and purposes in his mind. There is no evidence to indicate involvement of the suspects Matsunaga and/or Miyamura with capture and/or confinement. (2) Attempt of Compulsion According to the petitioner, the petitioner suffered injuries i.e. generalized muscle weakness, disuse muscle atrophy, and dystrophy as a result of capture and confinement; there was no problem after the first fasting, after the second fasting then only a small amount of rice gruel and rice porridge were given for approximately seven months following the second fasting, and only rice gruel and Pocari Water (type of isotonic drunk) were given for approximately seventy days following the third fasting, and after that, very meager meals were served. According to the suspects, the petitioner’s weight immediately after the end of the second fasting was 45 kilograms; and longer the fasting period is, the longer time is required before returning to shift back to ordinary diet; the suspects prepared meals considering nutrient balance; the suspects saw the petitioner’s photographs on the Unification Church’s web sites and propaganda bills and found out that the petitioner was not that skinny as in the photos, when they had seen the petitioner walking in and out of the bathroom with just his shorts. Results of the committee’s review are as follows. According to the internal medicine clinical history abstract prepared at Isshin Hospital, where the petitioner was hospitalized, the petitioner’s weight was 39.2 kilograms, whereas the medical certificate prepared by the hospital’s medical doctor reads “even on day 5th after hospitalization, there appears to be improvement in dehydration symptoms, and the patient weights 52.1 kilograms.” Also, a correction of the petitioner’s weight from 38 kg to 53 kg is observed in the risk-factor field on the Nutrition Management Plan. According to the report by a university hospital doctor who has examined the medical records prepared by Isshin Hospital, Isshin Hospital’s records read the petitioner’s weight as 39.2 kg on February 11, 52.1 kg on February 17, 51.1 kg on February 24, and 53 kg on February 27, and these figures are judged to be erroneous because 12.9 kg increase of the weight within 6 days from February 11 is unthinkable. In addition, according to the nurse who attended the weighing of the petitioner, the petitioner’s weight was taken as the nurse helped the petitioner on the scale with her hands to prevent him from falling over. In consideration to these factors, the weight record of 39.2 kilograms is doubtful. On the Basic Information for Nursing, “dystrophy” is written as the initial diagnosis on admission, the petitioner’s height also is written, but the weight column is mysteriously left blank, i.e. the vital information concerning the patient with dystrophy is missing. According to a national registered dietitian of Tokyo Metropolitan Police Hospital, although Goto family’s diet was short in required calories, the petitioner’s base metabolism should have been significantly reduced due to low physical movements staying indoors, so that the caloric shortage should not have been as much as to affect the petitioner’s health immediately. According also to the dietitian, as far as the results of the petitioner’s blood examination read, the petitioner’s dystrophy has not been of a serious degree. Takashi and Youko got married in January, 1995. Only after 8 months from the marriage, the couple began to live separately on many days because of the petitioner’s existence and missed their newly-married life. Masako lived with the petitioner from since she was 29 years old until 41. According to Masako, it was a very long and agonizing years for her that she could not play her friends, could not find work, and could not become romantically involved with someone, however she has no regret over these 12 years for which she and her family have exerted all what they had. According to Keiko, she brought back to home the items that the petitioner had been using, and she is reminded of the petitioner everytime she looks at these items, feeling racked with anxiety over where he is, what he is doing, and if he is eating well. Keiko confesses that, as the petitioner’s mother, she only wishes for her dearest son to esteem his own life and lead a happy life. The claim that the suspects etc. who are so concerned about the petitioner as a dearest family member to have injured the petitioner is doubtful. (3) Capture, Confinement, and Injury According to the petitioner, the petitioner suffered injuries i.e. generalized muscle weakness, disuse muscle atrophy, and dystrophy as a result of capture and confinement; there was no problem after the first fasting, after the second fasting then only a small amount of rice gruel and rice porridge were given for approximately seven months following the second fasting, and only rice gruel and Pocari Water (type of isotonic drunk) were given for approximately seventy days following the third fasting, and after that, very meager meals were served. According to the suspects, the petitioner’s weight immediately after the end of the second fasting was 45 kilograms; and longer the fasting period is, the longer time is required before returning to shift back to ordinary diet; the suspects prepared meals considering nutrient balance; the suspects saw the petitioner’s photographs on the Unification Church’s web sites and propaganda bills and found out that the petitioner was not that skinny as in the photos, when they had seen the petitioner walking in and out of the bathroom with just his shorts. Results of the committee’s review are as follows. According to the internal medicine clinical history abstract prepared at Isshin Hospital, where the petitioner was hospitalized, the petitioner’s weight was 39.2 kilograms, whereas the medical certificate prepared by the hospital’s medical doctor reads “even on day 5th after hospitalization, there appears to be improvement in dehydration symptoms, and the patient weights 52.1 kilograms.” Also, a correction of the petitioner’s weight from 38 kg to 53 kg is observed in the risk-factor field on the Nutrition Management Plan. According to the report by a university hospital doctor who has examined the medical records prepared by Isshin Hospital, Isshin Hospital’s records read the petitioner’s weight as 39.2 kg on February 11, 52.1 kg on February 17, 51.1 kg on February 24, and 53 kg on February 27, and these figures are judged to be erroneous because 12.9 kg increase of the weight within 6 days from February 11 is unthinkable. In addition, according to the nurse who attended the weighing of the petitioner, the petitioner’s weight was taken as the nurse helped the petitioner on the scale with her hands to prevent him from falling over. In consideration to these factors, the weight record of 39.2 kilograms is doubtful. On the Basic Information for Nursing, “dystrophy” is written as the initial diagnosis on admission, the petitioner’s height also is written, but the weight column is mysteriously left blank, i.e. the vital information concerning the patient with dystrophy is missing. According to a national registered dietitian of Tokyo Metropolitan Police Hospital, although Goto family’s diet was short in required calories, the petitioner’s base metabolism should have been significantly reduced due to low physical movements staying indoors, so that the caloric shortage should not have been as much as to affect the petitioner’s health immediately. According also to the dietitian, as far as the results of the petitioner’s blood examination read, the petitioner’s dystrophy has not been of a serious degree. Takashi and Youko got married in January, 1995. Only after 8 months from the marriage, the couple began to live separately on many days because of the petitioner’s existence and missed their newly-married life. Masako lived with the petitioner from since she was 29 years old until 41. According to Masako, it was a very long and agonizing years for her that she could not play her friends, could not find work, and could not become romantically involved with someone, however she has no regret over these 12 years for which she and her family have exerted all what they had. According to Keiko, she brought back to home the items that the petitioner had been using, and she is reminded of the petitioner everytime she looks at these items, feeling racked with anxiety over where he is, what he is doing, and if he is eating well. Keiko confesses that, as the petitioner’s mother, she only wishes for her dearest son to esteem his own life and lead a happy life. The claim that the suspects etc. who are so concerned about the petitioner as a dearest family member to have injured the petitioner is doubtful. 4. Conclusion There are too many doubts to judge the cases herein as an attempt of compulsion, capture, confinement, and injury. Therefore, the committee has reached the conclusion as stated in Summery of the Decision by the Committee herein Tokyo No. 4 Committee for the Inquest of Prosecution October 6, 2010
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