Law enforcement officials and well-wishers prayed for Junko Furuta’s safe return when she went missing while travelling home from her job at a plastic moulding factory in Misato, Saitama Prefecture, Japan. She was missing for a few days, though, before her mangled body was discovered encased in concrete inside a drum in Kt, Tokyo. Based on the horrific murder of Junko, the 1995 Japanese film “Concrete-Encased High School Girl Murder Case: Broken Seventeen-Year-Olds” shows how her assailants tortured and raped her for days before killing her in the most heinous manner imaginable. Let’s explore the specifics of this horrific case to learn more, shall we?
Who Raped Junko Furuta?
At the time of her death, Junko Furuta was 17 years old and lived in Misato, Saitama Prefecture, Japan, with her parents and two other siblings. She reportedly chose to work part-time even though she attended Yashio-Minami High School in order to support her family. As a result, the adolescent started working after school at a plastic moulding business and even started saving money for a trip after graduation. The people who knew Junko said that in addition to being well-liked by her friends, she was a smart student with high goals for the future.
After graduating, Junko accepted a job offer from an electronics retailer, but the 17-year-old actually had aspirations of becoming an idol singer. She was also quite helpful and kept up good contacts with most people, which made her kidnapping and subsequent death all the more terrible. On November 25, 1988, Hiroshi Miyano, J. Ogura, Shinji Minato, and Yasushi Watanabe noticed Junko Furuta while she was walking home from the plastic moulding facility.
All four of the young people were habitual criminals who spent most of their time on Shinji’s second floor and engaged in crimes ranging from minor thefts and pickpocketing to rape and sexual abuse. The youngsters also believed they were above the law since their commander, Hiroshi, was known to have connections with a Japanese mafia. The information that the teens were prowling around Misato looking for someone to rob and rape when they saw Junko riding her bike home would shock the readers. When they focused on her, Shinji lunged forward, knocking her off her bike before escaping.
The young girl was then contacted by Hiroshi, who stated he wanted to accompany her home securely. Junko entered what appeared to be a remote place, but he quickly overpowered her and pulled her into a warehouse where he raped her. The four lads threatened her with death and insisted that the Japanese Yakuza would kill her loved ones if she tried to flee after raping her a second time in a nearby hotel. After being carried to Shinji’s home on the second story of the Adachi neighborhood’s Ayase, the 17-year-old was gang-raped by the four kidnappers before they decided to hold her hostage for a few days.
By November 27, Junko’s family had gotten in touch with the police and asked them to investigate her abrupt disappearance. The kidnappers forced the 17-year-old to call her parents and tell them that she had escaped on her own, but they did so out of fear of being prosecuted. They even forced Junko to pose as Hiroshi’s girlfriend in front of Hiroshi’s parents and instructed her to ask her parents to stop the probe. During this time, the latter had some of his buddies over to Shinji’s house, where they revelled in the vicious rape and torture of the young schoolgirl.
In addition to being repeatedly and ruthlessly gang-raped, Junko was forced to dance naked and shave her pubic hair. In addition, the boys made her perform acts of prostitution in front of them and frequently abandoned her on the balcony over night. In addition, the youths made Junko smoke many cigarettes and ingest paint thinner while feeding her meagre bits of food. Readers would also be horrified to read that Junko’s tormentors shoved foreign items into her body and burned her legs with lighter fuel as part of their cruel punishment.
How Did Junko Furuta Die?
After being held captive for over a month, Junko grew incredibly frail as her captors kept her alive by feeding her milk, vodka, and water. She was rendered immobile by the treatment, and her bloated face turned the boys off from pursuing her sexually. Yet, they persisted in brutally assaulting and tormenting her until January 4, 1989, when Hiroshi crossed the line. He reportedly lost a game of Mahjong the night before and was prepared to vent his resentment on the victim. Therefore, before setting fire to Junko, he took a bottle of lighter fluid and poured it over her body.
The 17-year-old allegedly did her best to put out the flames, but her weakness soon overcame her, and she lost consciousness. In spite of that, the boys kept punching her and dripping hot wax all over her face as they tortured her. One of the kidnappers allegedly forced Junko to drink her own urine before kicking her, which caused the adolescent to smash into a music system. According to sources, the sufferer aggressively convulsed on the ground as a result of the severe shock. Nonetheless, the attackers continued to beat her for more than two hours and even dropped an iron exercise ball on her stomach before she passed away from her wounds.
The abductors wrapped Junko’s body in blankets after realising she had passed away and placed her inside a bag. The bag was afterwards put inside a cement truck in Kt, Tokyo, after being completely filled with cement in a drum. It’s interesting to note that after holding Junko captive for nearly a month, her captors lost interest in her and raped another woman. Hiroshi Miyano and J Ogura were identified by the police as suspects in the second crime, but the former thought the authorities were aware of his role in the teen’s death. As a result, Hiroshi revealed his involvement in the murder and directed the police to Junko’s body.
When they were accused of causing bodily harm that resulted in death, Hiroshi Miyano, J. Ogura, Shinji Minato, and Yasushi Watanabe all entered guilty pleas. As a result, Hiroshi was given a 17-year jail sentence in 1990; however, the Tokyo High Court increased that sentence by three years after hearing his appeal. On the other hand, Shinji Minato was given a sentence of 4 to 6 years in jail, but a judge increased it to 5 to 9 years on appeal for Yasushi Watanabe. Both of these sentences were handed out in 1990. In the meantime, J. Ogura was tried as a child in 1991 and given an eight-year term in a juvenile detention facility.
