Homicidal Poisoning in Japan: Offender and Crime Characteristics

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine empirically those who committed homicidal poisoning in Japan (N = 96). Typically, offenders were middle-aged (mean 43.2 years), had a fixed residence (99 per cent), had no criminal record (81 per cent), were employed (68 per cent), and married (56 per cent): 54 per cent of the offenders were female. The offenders could be differentiated by categorical principal component analysis (CATPCA) into two poisoning themes: 'instrumental' (N = 65) and 'expressive' (N = 31). In 'instrumental' poisoning, the offenders were likely to induce a coma in a victim using medical supplies such as hypnotics, and then murder the victim, usually by strangling or stabbing. There were more co-offenders among 'instrumental' poisoners than among 'expressive' poisoners. The offenders who committed 'expressive' poisoning were inclined to poison victims serially or collectively in the workplace during daytime. These offenders were more likely to live with a parent/parents and exhibit mental health problems than those who committed 'instrumental' poisoning.

An Analysis of Crime Scene Behavior in Korean Homicide

“…Landau (as cited in Smith, 2000) stressed that cross-cultural research is needed, not only to increase our knowledge on homicide from different countries but also to test Western-based theories in other cultural contexts. The expressive/instrumental dichotomy was recently reproduced in studies from different countries such as the United States (Salfati & Bateman, 2005; Sorochinski & Salfati, 2010), Belgium (Thijssen & de Ruiter, 2011), Greece (Salfati & Haratsis, 2001), Canada (Salfati & Dupont, 2006), Finland (Santtila et al, 2001) and Japan (Zaitsu, 2010). Although these studies showed that a single framework can be applicable to homicides from different countries, they also highlighted the importance of the awareness of national differences and the need to further explore how these differences may be manifested in the behaviors offenders engage in at the crime scene.…”

Sex Difference in Homicide: Comparing Male and Female Violent Crimes in Korea

“…The selection of crime scene action variables in the current study was made based on the robust results in both Western and Eastern studies. The researches were conducted in the United States (Salfati & Bateman, 2005;Sorochinski & Salfati, 2010), Belgium (Thijssen & Ruiter, 2011), Greece (Salfati & Haratsis, 2001), Canada (Salfati & Dupont, 2006), Finland (Santtila et al, 2001), Korea (Salfati & Park, 2007;Sea & Beauregard, 2017a), and Japan (Zaitsu, 2010).…”

What have we learned from offender profiling? A systematic review and meta-analysis of 40 years of research.

“…Instead, studies on homicide clearly indicate that there are other profile types that fit the characteristics of various types of homicide offenders. The recurring profiles found in this study include expressive, instrumental, visionary, hedonistic, power/control, traveling, and local homicide offenders (see Hickey, 1991;Salfati & Dupont, 2006;Zaitsu, 2010).…”

“…To illustrate the variation in these profile types, we submit that expressive homicides as emotion-laden and committed to relieve the offender’s emotional distress or anger (Salfati & DuPont, 2006); instrumental homicides achieve a goal such as revenge, financial gain, or crime concealment (Zaitsu, 2010); visionary killers murder in response to voices or visions from a good or evil power; hedonistic offenders are thrill-seekers who gain satisfaction from the act of homicide; power/control offenders kill to feel power over helpless victims; traveling murderers may kill across thousands of miles; and local offenders do not leave their comfort zone (Hickey, 1991).…”