Tokyo

A Japanese man secretly filmed over 1,000 women bathing in several hot springs and is now facing a jail term. The man reportedly embedded the cameras into fake rocks and placed them in the area. 

Advertisment

The matter came to light after one of the women found the hidden camera at a hot spring in Yamagata prefecture. The 31-year-old accused was arrested in May from the Fukushima prefecture.

A report by the Japanese media outlet TBS News Dig stated that the woman got suspicious after noticing strange reflections in a rock. She checked the rock and realised that it had a spy camera inside it. The rock was also fake.

The woman reported the incident to the police, who went to the spot and took possession of the rock and the camera. When the man came looking for it, they arrested him. The camera has films of 44 victims, the police said. 

Advertisment

How did he hide the cameras?

The man went to great lengths to hide his creepy endeavours. He told the police that he bought a telelens online and crafted a rock using clay and brown plastic in which he hid the camera. He then wrapped the camera’s cable in brown tape and connected it to a power bank so that the cords were not noticeable.

He then disguised himself as a mountain climber and hid behind a camouflage net. He observed his surroundings without raising any suspicion. 

Advertisment

The man did the same thing at many more hot springs and said he had been doing so since 2022, filming over 1,000 victims. He was earlier also convicted of possessing child pornography.

The prosecutor described the crime as “planned, repeated, and fundamentally harmful" and wants at least two years in jail for him. The verdict will be delivered on September 17.

Illegally recording someone using hidden cameras is a common nuisance in Japan. In 2022, 5,737 such cases were reported by the Japan National Police Agency, with 5,730 cases being reported last year.