Tsutomu Miyazaki: The Human Dracula

___________________________

Criminology 400
George Mason University
Kailey Kleimenhagen
Introduction

On August 22, 1988, four-year-old Mari Konno was abducted from her friend’s house

and killed. She was photographed, strangled, undressed, and her lifeless body was sexually

assaulted. Mari was the first known victim in a string of attached murders. The following

murders demonstrated almost identical qualities to the first victim. The subject abducted each of

the victims, took photos of them, strangled them, and with most of the victims, engaged in sexual

acts with their corpses (The Human Dracula, 2018).

The subject successfully executed three more murders of the same fashion before slipping

up. On July 23, 1989, the subject attempted to abduct two sisters. The subject was able to lure

one away, but the other one was able to run home and get help. The young girls’ father found the

subject taking pictures of his daughter’s genitals, and attempted to attack him; however, the

subject got away. Shortly after, the police found the subject trying to get back to a vehicle. The

subject was arrested and shortly after, identified as Tsutomu Miyazaki (The Human Dracula,

2018).

After Miyazaki’s arrest, he claimed that “Rat Man” told him he needed to kill. He was

found to have Multiple Personality disorder as well as Schizophrenia. His own father was so

ashamed of Miyazaki’s actions that he refused to pay for legal counsel for him. His father later

committed suicide because he was so guilt-ridden (Tsutomu Miyazaki).

Even after Miyazaki was diagnosed with Multiple personality Disorder and

Schizophrenia, the court still judged him fit to stand trial. Miyazaki was sentenced to death.
After two appeals in 2001 and 2006, his sentence upheld, and he was hanged at age 45 on June

17, 2008 (Tsutomu Miyazaki).

Tsutomu Miyazaki was different from the moment he was born. He was prematurely

born, which caused a rare birth defect that fused his joints together, which left him with

deformed hands. His deformity put him in a dark place. He was constantly harassed and bullied

by his classmates, and even his own family. He was rejected by his own two sisters, and only

ever felt support from his grandfather. Miyazaki’s grandfather died in 1988 which sent him into

a downward spiral. He even ate some of his grandfather’s ashes in order to “retain something

from them” (The Human Dracula, 2018).

Along with that, he also developed an inferiority complex due to the size of his penis.

Doctors found that he had an abnormal hyper sex drive, but no woman wanted him. Because of

that, he began taking photos and videos of girls at tennis courts to satisfy his needs. His

obsession with pornography took off from there, but he really found his passion in child

pornography (Perry, 2021). The obsession carried to his victims.

TIMELINE (The Human Dracula, 2018)

August 22, 1988: Mari Konno (4 years old)

 Abducted her, took her to a wooded area and took pictures of her
 Strangled and undressed her, then engaged in sexual acts with her corpse
 Took her clothes and left her body
 Mari’s parents received a box on their doorstep with pictures of her clothes, teeth,
and charred bone fragments in it – along with a postcard: “Mari. Cremated. Bones.
Investigate. Prove.”

October 3, 1988: Masami Yoshizawa (7 years old)

 Persuaded her into getting in his car where he took pictures of her
  Strangled her
 Had sex with her corpse and removed her clothes
 Left her naked body close to the scene of his first victim

December 12, 1988: Erika Numba (4 years old)

 Abducted her and drove her to a parking lot
 Forced her to undress and took photos of her
 Killed her and took her clothes, but later disposed of them in a wooded area
 Left her body in the parking lot
 Sent a postcard to her family: “Erika. Cold. Cough. Throat. Rest. Death.”

June 6, 1989: Ayako Nomoto (5 years old)

 Abducted from park and killed like others
 Took her body back to his house and videotaped it
 Dismembered her body and ate part of her flesh
 Dumped her body at the cemetery

July 23, 1989: Unnamed girls – Sisters

 Approached two sisters
 Able to lure one away, but the other ran home for help
 Young girl’s father found Miyazaki taking pictures of his daughter’s genitals and
tried to attack him
 Miyazaki got away
 Police officers found him trying to get back to his car and arrested him

Tsutomu Miyazaki’s four victims.

Methodologies

There were several methodologies that were used to categorize the variables of this

investigation. One methodology that was used to create this profile was Modus Operandi, or

MO. The MO is the method employed to commit the crime. MO behaviors most often serve one

of the following purposes: protection of the offender identity (wearing a mask, covering a

victim’s eyes, wearing gloves, staging the crime scene, etc.), successful completion of the crime

(targeting and acquiring the victim, using a gag for silencing, using a weapon to control the

victim, using a gun to kill the victim, etc.), and facilitation of offender escape (use of a stolen

vehicle, disposal of vehicle after the commission of the crime, tying up/knocking out the victims

to prevent their escape, etc.). General descriptions of the MO typically consist of crime scene

characteristics (Turvey, 2012).

Another methodology utilized to construct this profile was the use of signature behaviors.

Signature behaviors are the acts committed by the offender that aren’t necessary to commit the

crime, but rather suggest psychological or emotional needs. Some common examples of a

signature would be a specific and repeated victim type, notes or symbols left at the scene, or

specific and repeated constellation of injuries to the body (Turvey, 2012).

In addition, a less discussed methodology was utilized to construct this profile, which

was organized vs disorganized crime scenes. This crime scene classification theory represents a

conceptual division, most commonly referred to as a dichotomy, which means a division into

two contradictory parts. An overall organized crime scene is one that displays evidence of
planning; the victim is a targeted stranger, the crime scene reflects overall control, there are

restraints used, and aggressive acts occur before death. In contrast, a disorganized crime scene

shows spontaneity; where the victim or location is known, but the crime scene is random and

sloppy, there is sudden violence, minimal restraints are used, and there are sexual acts after

death. With that being said, there are rarely crime scenes that land on one end of the spectrum.

The majority of crime scenes present somewhere on a continuum between the two extreme

classifications of organized and disorganized, not as simply one or the other (Gudaitis Slides,

Feb 2nd).

A more theoretical methodology was also used while constructing this profile, which was

the five-factor model. The five-factor model is a five-factor investigative psychology method

that when applied, reflects an offender’s past and present. The five factors are interpersonal

coherence, significance of time and place, criminal characteristics, criminal career, and forensic

awareness (Gudaitis Slides, Feb 2nd).

Interpersonal coherence is a person’s style of interaction when dealing with others. Dr.

David Canter, the main advocate of investigative psychology, believes that offenders treat their

victims similarly to the way they treat people in their daily lives. Significance of time and place

states that the time and place are often specifically chosen by the offender, and so it should

provide further insight into the offender’s actions in the form of mental maps. Basically, an

offender will feel calmer and more in control in an area they know well compared to an area they

are not familiar with. Criminal characteristics provide investigators w the type of crime they are

dealing with, like the organized vs disorganized methodology. Criminal career provides an
understanding of how offenders may modify behavior in light of experience. It suggests that as

the offender gains experience, it may account for the evolution of their modus operandi. The

offender gets more comfortable executing the crime because of the experience they have

acquired with time. Finally, forensic awareness applies to learning based on past experience with

the criminal justice system. Based on experience, offenders learn to use techniques that hinder

police investigations. The techniques could include wearing a mask or gloves, bleaching a crime

scene, or using a condom to prevent the transfer of bodily fluids (Turvey, 2012).

Each of these methodologies were applied to this investigation to create a profile of the

given offender. The application of the methodologies supported the conviction of Tsutomu

Miyazaki as The Human Dracula.

Behavioral Profile

In the profiling of Tsutomu Miyazaki, the modus operandi was analyzed. Miyazaki

demonstrated his modus operandi through the methods he used to commit the crimes. He

specifically targeted young girls between four and seven years of age. He abducted each victim

by luring them into his vehicle through some sort of manipulation. He then brought each of them

to a private, secluded area where he killed them by strangulation. He dumped each body

relatively close to the next. Each body remained at the crime scene, except his last victim that he

transported. His modus operandi stayed relatively consistent throughout each of the killings.

Many of the postmortem acts Miyazaki engaged in showed his signature. He

photographed each of his victims, specifically their genitals. He also engaged in sexual acts with
each of his victim’s corpses, and on one occasion, cannibalized a body part. Miyazaki

dismembered his victims and kept individual body parts as trophies, along with his victim’s

clothing. He also sent postcards to the families of the victims containing abbreviated messages.

The postcard sent to Mari Konno’s family read: “Mari. Cremated. Bones. Investigate. Prove”

(Tsutomu Miyazaki).

An aspect of the five-factor model was utilized to profile Miyazaki. He demonstrated

criminal career through the evolution in MO and comfortability between his first and his last

victims. Mari Konno, his first known victim, was killed successfully and efficiently. He followed

the previously described MO (abducted, brought to a secluded area, strangled, dumped).

However, by his fourth victim, Ayako Nomoto, Miyazaki expanded his MO and showed a level

of developed comfortability through his criminal experience. Ayako Nomoto was abducted and

strangled like the previous three victims, but Miyazaki then brought her body back to his home

and videotaped it. He dismembered her body and ate part of her flesh before he went back out

and dumped her remains in a cemetery. The increase in level of comfortability was clearly

demonstrated when Miyazaki brought the corpse home, as well as the addition of the

cannibalistic act. However, Miyazaki became too comfortable. He then decided to go after two

sisters which proved to be too big of a challenge. As previously discussed, Miyazaki was able to

abduct one of the two sisters. The other sister ran home and got help. The girls’ father found

Miyazaki photographing the daughter he abducted. Miyazaki was able to get away, but shortly

after, was apprehended by the police. He bit off more than he could chew and was caught red

handed. Criminal career ended up being Miyazaki’s downfall.

 Within each of his crime scenes, Miyazaki showed both organized and disorganized

characteristics. He showed organization through the way he targeted his victims. Each victim

was a targeted stranger. He did not previously know any of the victims, nor were they picked

from the same location each time. While strangers, each offense was planned. Miyazaki went out

driving, sometimes for hours on end, with the intent to abduct and kill a young girl (Tsutomu

Miyazaki). Each offense began with this intent rather than spontaneity, which also showed a

level of organization. He was organized in the way he planned and executed the crimes, but the

way he handled everything after was a different story.

Miyazaki showed disorganization through the way he handled his victims after death. He

left most of his victims’ bodies at the scene, which showed laziness and sloppiness. He also

engaged in sexual acts with each of his victims after death, which showed disorganization

(Tsutomu Miyazaki). The combination of organized and disorganized characteristics from

Miyazaki followed the dichotomy that no offender fits into just one of the two categories. With

that being said, Miyazaki seemed to be more disorganized than organized. He handled each

victim sloppily, and eventually became reckless.

Conclusion

Tsutomu Miyazaki was a pedophilic, cannibalistic necrophile. His childhood

significantly affected his mental status and was a contributing factor that led him to commit these

horrendous crimes. With that being said, it cannot all be attributed to his childhood. The possible

trigger that pushed Miyazaki to begin killing was the death of his grandfather. His grandfather
died in May of 1988, and his first victim was killed in August of 1988 (The Human Dracula,

2018). As stated previously, Miyazaki’s grandfather was the only person in his life that showed

him love and support. His death must have been the tipping point that sent Miyazaki over the

edge.

Miyazaki demonstrated the same modus operandi between each of his victims, but he

grew with experience and evolved through criminal career. However, Miyazaki’s disorganization

led him to capture.

Miyazaki was a lonely, ill man who was driven by sexual desire. No woman was

attracted to him because of his deformity and his unusually small penis. He turned to young girls

to satisfy his needs because he was able to overpower them, and simply because he liked them.

He never felt seen or powerful at any point of his life. When he was with his victims, he felt

heard, seen, and powerful, which gratified him. His killings and then postmortem sexual acts

satisfied his extreme sexual desires and fantasies. Miyazaki most likely would not have stopped

killing if he had not been caught.

Future Research/Investigation

This case was fully solved. The way Tsutomu Miyazaki was apprehended left no

question that he was responsible for these horrendous crimes. The possibly only question left

lingering surrounding the investigation is whether or not Miyazaki truly was competent to stand

trial. As stated previously, he was diagnosed with Multiple Personality Disorder and
Schizophrenia directly after being arrested. These disorders significantly affect thoughts,

feelings, and behaviors. They can cause delusion, amnesia, paranoia, hallucinations, and even

depression. Miyazaki could have potentially been tested more heavily to see how much his

disorders affected his behavior and judgement. It is unlikely that he was entirely fit to stand trial

in the condition he was supposedly in, but there is no way to know now. It would be interesting

to see the psychological evaluation that took place.

It is important to keep an eye on individuals who go through adverse childhood

experiences. There is research out there surrounding the different traumatic experiences children

sustain growing up and the effect it has on their criminal record in their adult lives. Tsutomu

Miyazaki is a great example that neglect, bullying, and abnormalities (like birth defects) can all

be contributing factors to criminal behavior down the line. There are many other factors from

childhood that can contribute as well. This is just one case, so more would have to be examined

to really find a true correlation that sticks. However, Tsutomu Miyazaki is a great starting point

for this research.

These are the cases that are easier to prevent if caught early enough. Miyazaki’s family

should have seen the signs sooner. He self-isolated, was antisocial, and had an inferiority

complex that had to have been somewhat apparent to others. It is extremely important to

carefully watch as a child grows up. If the signs are there, and it is caught early enough, it can

save someone’s life.

 References

A Twist of Fate. (2018, August 15). The Human Dracula.

https://atwistoffatepod.medium.com/the-human-dracula-6424d245697b.

Perry, J. (2021, February 8). The Horrific Japanese Serial Murders of Cannibal Tsutomu

Miyazaki. Talk Murder to Me. https://talkmurder.com/tsutomu-miyazaki/.

Tsutomu Miyazaki. Fandom. (n.d.). https://criminalminds.fandom.com/wiki/Tsutomu_Miyazaki.

Turvey, B. E. (2012). Criminal Profiling: An Introduction to Behavioral Evidence Analysis

(Fourth Edition). Academic Press.