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Twins Sent to Jail for Extorting from Akihabara Otaku

On Tuesday, the Tokyo District Court sentenced a young man and his twin sister to jail time and probation for extorting money from people on the streets of the "Electric Town" neighborhood of Akihabara. According to the verdict handed down by court judge Masahiko Hayashi, the twins "viewed the otaku in Akihabara as easy targets for extortion." The twin brother, Chuo University junior Satoshi Isono, was sentenced to one year and six months of imprisonment with three years of probation. The sister, Yuka Isono, was sentenced to one year and two months of imprisonment and three years of probation.

According to the ruling, the twins carried out their attacks in August when the sister would bump into people on the street and then (joined by her brother) would demand that the person she bumped into apologize. The brother would then demand payments as a method of apology. In total, the twins extorted 110,000 yen (about US$1,000) from two different people.

The plan was hatched by the sister, who is currently still under probation for a hit-and-run accident that occurred earlier this year. She suggested the plan to her brother, who was studying to pursue a career in law himself. In his final statement before the court, the brother asked the judge to go easy on his sister. The judge denied the request, citing her involvement with coming up with the idea in the first place.

Source: Mainichi Shinbun