01x07 - Episode 7

[bunniefuu]

The Maebashi family m*rder case.

We are convinced

that Kazuma Akiba is innocent.

Prosecution, please submit

any evidence you have.

That will prove my father's innocence.

The prosecution seized

Mr. Akiba's MiniDV camera and tapes.

The recording date and time

should be embedded in that data.

The evidence submission?

We're working on it.

They have reported the MiniDV tape

we requested as "not found."

Huh?

Why do you and the prosecution

respond with "not found."

Answer me.

If you don't know what you don't know,

you'll never know what you need to know.

I want to know the truth.

I've joined the retrial proceeding,

and I will uncover what happened

25 years ago no matter what.

Do what you will.

I see you're still falling over.

Be sure to watch

where you're going.

Look who it is.

This used to be a hidden gem.

It was a hidden gem for me too.

Don't tell me, is that

ketchup instead of strawberry jam?

I've heard

that you eat nothing

but ketchup spaghetti at Paloma.

And also, that you buy large amounts

of ketchup at the supermarket.

I know I'm a picky eater.

I want to give up ketchup,

but I just can't.

You might like this.

It's onion soup.

My wife's a picky eater too.

She's currently pregnant,

but needs sustenance.

That's something she can stomach.

Today's conference is going to be tough.

I can see your accusatory looks.

This concerns the MiniDV tape

-you asked me to submit as evidence.

-That's right.

The fact is, it can't be located.

We even brought backup from HQ

to conduct a search, but

it wasn't there.

Quit snickering.

It's enough to make anyone laugh.

You expect me to believe that?

If HQ was involved, isn't it possible

someone deliberately hid it from you?

Mr. Yuki wouldn't do that.

Never.

He would never do that.

I will continue to investigate thoroughly.

Without the submission of key evidence,

there are no grounds

to grant a retrial at this time.

I think that's reasonable.

I agree.

We have no objections either.

Even if the district court granted it,

prosecution will appeal it in High Court,

and the retrial would probably be denied.

So we're stuck waiting

until the missing evidence

turns up?

In the past, proceedings have stalled

over matters like this, costing us years.

And in the end, the evidence never

surfaces, and the petition is denied.

Over the course of many years,

it ruins the lives of everyone involved.

How is this acceptable?

No

It's unacceptable.

A review of a petition for retrial

is different from an ordinary trial,

where the prosecution and the defendant

lead the proceedings, isn't it?

It's the court that leads

the effort to find new evidence.

They took the bait too easily.

Not "they." Mr. Kadokura took the bait.

That said, Japan's retrial system

does have undeniable flaws.

If there's something the court can do,

it should.

I, too

want the truth to come to light.

To reiterate, one of the primary factors

behind Kazuma Akiba's arrest

was motive.

Also

eyewitness testimony.

The reliability of

this eyewitness testimony is in question.

A witness claims to have seen

Kazuma Akiba here.

It was shortly after 8:00 p.m.,

and it was a dimly lit

residential neighborhood.

Given the conditions, it's doubtful

that the witness could have seen his face.

Let's conduct our own

on-site verification.

There is one more thing that concerns me.

We've gotten over one hundred tips after

the petitioner made a public appeal.

As is often the case,

most of the information is false.

Yes, but this interests me.

"I hope the truth about the Maebashi

family m*rder case comes to light."

It was sent with a paragraph from a copy

of theTown News from Bunkyo Ward, Tokyo.

It conveys condolences for Tomoyo Hatori,

an engineer involved in crime prevention

who passed away after falling at home.

This is all that was sent?

That's all.

It clearly has nothing to do

with the murders.

That's why it's interesting.

All the other tips were directly related.

But this one has no connection whatsoever.

Which leads me to suspect

there's an unseen connection.

That's very Ando-like logic.

I'll look into this matter.

I'll help.

-I'll reexamine documents and evidence.

-Okay.

The rest of us will verify

the witness testimony.

Yes, sir.

I'm an alien.

Laws are social agreements.

If those agreements are broken

and mistakes are made,

we must admit our mistakes.

This is also an important agreement

that must be kept.

THEMIS' UNCERTAIN COUR

EPISODE 7

COURT-LED INQUISITORIAL PRINCIPLE

We spoke at Johoku Police Station.

You were calling for a reinvestigation

into Tomoyo's accident, right?

Correct.

But, they didn't accept it.

Please allow us to look into this matter.

What?

But why would a judge and a lawyer?

There are matters we can

and cannot discuss.

However,

I am interested in your daughter's

accidental death.

If there's a possibility of criminality,

legal measures,

and a lawyer, would be necessary, right?

I understand why I'd need a lawyer, but

Oh, no need to worry about him.

He's a special judge.

There's a jump in the conversation.

That doesn't explain anything.

It's fine.

Please face forward.

Well,

I felt I should say something.

I'm glad someone unexpectedly

showed an interest in my daughter's death.

Please look into it.

The apartment my daughter rented in Tokyo

has been untouched.

I visited every week

and looked into her life on my own.

My wife passed away from cancer

when Tomoyo was in college.

I'm all alone.

But, I'm not fixated on the truth

of my daughter's death out of loneliness.

Something about her death doesn't add up.

I believe

my daughter was m*rder*d.

This is where the victim's house

stood at the time.

The location and number of streetlights

match the conditions at the time.

And from that vantage point

is where the eyewitness says they saw

Kazuma Akiba in front of the Bando house.

Mr. Ogihara and Attorney Yamakawa

are dressed as described in the testimony.

They'll walk through here

one after the other.

Please tell me which one is Mr. Ogihara.

Okay.

Ready?

Go ahead.

Next, please.

Which one was Mr. Ogihara?

The second person just now?

The first person.

You're wrong.

Both of you.

Neither of them was Mr. Ogihara.

What?

On Ms. Hozumi's orders,

I just dressed like this

and waited in hiding.

I had Yamakawa walk twice.

At that time, Kazuma Akiba

often wore a hat and green outerwear.

Everyone in the neighborhood knew

that he had

repeatedly shown up

at the Bando residence.

They only said they saw Kazuma Akiba

because of preconceived notions.

Mr. Furukawa!

Did you speak

with the original eyewitness?

No.

They said they didn't want

to bring up the past.

Well, if you knew your testimony led

to arrest, and it may have been wrong

Of course they'd hesitate.

However, I was able to speak

with the witness's family.

The testimony went from,

"It looked like Kazuma Akiba."

and somehow turned into,

"I saw Kazuma Akiba."

That's what they told us.

This case lacked solid physical evidence.

The weapon was a knife

from the victim's house.

Any fingerprints

appear to have been wiped away.

Kazuma Akiba was targeted

because of motive,

and vague eyewitness testimony

was elevated into key evidence.

And Deputy Prosecutor General Yuki.

-He forced a confession--

-He would never.

It's gotten cold out.

Let's go get a warm drink

or something, alright?

It's pretty cold out, isn't it?

Let's take a break.

Pick one.

-Ah I'll take the coffee, then.

-Sure.

Thank you.

Say

Why is it that you believe in Mr. Yuki

so much?

I owe a great deal

to Mr. Yuki.

When I was in middle school,

my father, who was a bus driver,

passed away in an accident while at work.

On top of that,

some passengers were k*lled or injured.

My father was chronically ill,

but he hid his illness

and went about his work.

His company said it was my father's fault.

The victims' families blamed him too.

But Mr. Yuki

revealed that the accident

was caused by poor maintenance.

He cleared my father's name.

I see.

So then, you looked up to Mr. Yuki

and became a prosecutor yourself.

When I became a prosecutor,

Mr. Yuki was happier for me

than anybody else.

Hidetoshi Yuki is a man of justice.

But that might be

just one side of him.

I admit that the eyewitness testimony

may lack credibility.

However, unless new testimony emerges,

it's still just speculation, isn't it?

No, not at all.

My grades were good.

That's nice.

I can help you next time if you want.

Nah, it's fine.

Excuse me, I have a question.

Did there used to be

a cram school around here?

-Come in.

-Thank you.

Tomoyo was quite young,

but must have had a substantial income.

She was just beginning

to establish herself.

But there are some who earn

tens of millions of yen.

My daughter was building a cyber defense

system for a major security firm.

When a breach occurs, she would diagnose

the system and plan countermeasures.

She was also involved

in cybercrime prevention, correct?

She mostly focused on fraud schemes.

She also helped out

with workshops for residents.

-Come in.

-Thank you.

Tomoyo fell

and hit her head here, correct?

That's right.

Aside from removing the bloodstains,

everything has been left as it was.

She was suffering

from severe overwork.

And just before the fall, she had taken

four sleeping pills instead of two.

She was knocked unconscious

after hitting her head.

With no one to help her,

she died of a cerebral hemorrhage.

Mr. Ando?

Excuse me May I take some pictures?

Yes, go ahead.

Mr. Hatori, you mentioned there were

suspicious aspects to Tomoyo's death?

When I checked her phone records,

she dialed 110, the police,

right around the time she fell.

When I asked the police to look into it,

they said she disconnected immediately.

They said she may have mistakenly dialed

110 instead of 119, the emergency number.

They said mixing up the numbers

happens all the time.

But that doesn't

make any sense to me.

Was this Tomoyo's hobby?

She used to call it "her thing."

Her thing

She's not a trainspotter,

she's an ambulance spotter.

Ambulance spotter?

Yes.

She toured fire stations nationwide,

photographed ambulances, and talked about

them with other ambulance enthusiasts.

It's something she was

very passionate about.

Looking at the lined-up photos,

it's clear none has the same design.

Interesting. I could look at them forever.

If Tomoyo had heard what you just said,

she would've been delighted.

At any rate, there's no way

my daughter would have tried to call 119,

and mistakenly dialed 110.

A stranger must have been visiting,

and she must have sensed

her life was in danger.

And that's why she tried dialing 110.

Did the intercom camera pick up

any suspicious individuals?

No.

How about the building's cameras?

Most units are privately-owned, so there's

only one camera at the entrance.

Nobody suspicious

was recorded on that either.

But there's one other thing

that bothers me.

I'm pretty sure

one of her laptops disappeared.

I remember it being a dark red color.

I looked for it everywhere,

but couldn't find it.

You mean,

there's a possibility it was stolen?

Yes.

Please, I hope you'll keep that in mind.

I'm afraid I can't agree

with Mr. Hatori on this.

No matter how much she loved ambulances,

she still hit her head when she fell.

It's likely she'd press the wrong buttons.

I agree.

No suspicious individuals

were seen either.

Her laptop may have been sent for repairs,

among other reasons.

I think

that Mr. Hatori hasn't come to terms

with his daughter's death.

Either way, I have no idea how this is

linked to the Maebashi family m*rder case.

Yes. No idea.

-If you don't know what you don't know--

-You'll never know what you need to know.

We'll continue a thorough investigation.

Yes.

Maebashi District Court First Branch.

Sorry for the trouble, however,

Judge Kadokura is out on business.

Yes.

Yes Well

He won't be back into the office today.

Yes.

I see.

Thank you.

Ms. Tsumura!

I'd like your advice about

the Maebashi family m*rder case.

Not my duty.

Just a moment of your time.

I have a reservation

at a popular BBQ place.

What is it?

Eating BBQ by yourself?

I was right about you being single.

Huh?

Wait a second, I'll go with you.

Wait, BBQ with you?

Spare me.

Objection overruled.

There are records compiled by the defense

team involved in the retrial petitions,

regarding the victim's acquaintances.

The victim, Tomoyasu Bando,

had a business card from Toshiki Tatsumi,

from a real estate company

in Minato Ward, Tokyo.

This company went bankrupt in 2006.

Tomoyasu Bando was a librarian.

Why was a librarian in Gunma in contact

with a real estate company in Tokyo?

The victim wrote the date they met

on the back of the business card.

According to the date, it was one year

before the incident.

So?

I'd like to look into this real estate

company just to be sure.

This needs to be investigated

from a different angle.

It might have something to do

with the incident.

So?

You know a lot about real estate,

don't you, Ms. Tsumura?

You only rely on me

when it's convenient for you.

I wanted to consult you on this matter

because it aligns with your expertise.

Crab.

Crab?

Snow crab, red king crab,

horsehair crab, blue king crab

Crab sashimi, grilled crab,

grilled crab innards in shell.

-Crab porridge, crab rice--

-I see. Your consultation fee.

I will check whether

this goes against judicial ethics

and consult my supervisor.

Alright, it's settled then.

The Minato Ward area underwent

major redevelopment 25 years ago.

There seem to be all sorts

of urban legends, too.

I'll look into it.

-Thank you.

-Sure.

Mr. Ando.

Mr. Ando!

Yes?

So, you finally noticed.

You really do respond to women's voices.

Thanks, Ms. Tanaka.

No problem.

You haven't ordered yet,

and you're already in your own world.

Your usual ketchup spaghetti meal, right?

Oh.

Mr. Ando?

ONION SOUP

What's this?

Huh?

Sorry for having you make this for me.

Not at all. I'm interested in whether

you can eat something other than ketchup.

Here you are. My special onion soup.

I can eat it. It's palatable.

I'm glad!

I'll start making this at home,

and stop coming to Paloma.

What?

I'm giving up ketchup.

Wait, wait, wait. Please keep coming.

I'll add this to the menu. Okay?

Thank you.

Wait. You don't have to give up

ketchup entirely, right?

Right? With this

Thought you'd be here.

Good evening.

One hot coffee, please.

Coming right up.

Mr. Ando.

I learned something.

It's about the dark red laptop

that went missing.

It's actually a tablet, to be exact.

The city provided rooms for the fraud

scheme prevention workshops.

I checked in with the staff there.

They said Ms. Hatori always had

a dark red tablet with her.

There was a workshop the day she died,

during which she used her tablet

to show materials on a screen.

She didn't send it in for repairs.

Things that were there

before the accident are missing.

What on earth could this mean?

A missing tablet

and a call to 110 just before she died

-This is getting mysterious.

-Yes.

We'll keep investigating, including any

link to the Maebashi family murders case.

I have one thing I'm concerned

about as well.

A Tokyo real estate agency

business card the victim, Mr. Bando, had.

I had Ms. Tsumura look into it.

It seems the company was involved

in Matsukawadai's redevelopment back then.

Mr. Bando owned land here

he had inherited from his parents,

and he refused offers to sell it.

But after the incident, a relative

inherited and sold it off.

Land development, huh.

Something's fishy about this.

Yes, there is.

What is, or is not, connected?

I'll continue investigating

with Ms. Tsumura's help.

Also.

About the eyewitness testimony

I've got a new lead.

At the location,

I met some kids going home

from cram school.

I wondered if there was one back then too,

and there was one old cram school.

I searched everywhere

for anyone who had

attended that cram school 25 years ago.

When the crime occurred,

just after 8:00 p.m.,

someone passed by the Bando residence.

Apparently, a man was seen wearing a cap

and green outerwear.

Was it Kazuma Akiba?

No, just someone who looked like him.

At the time, elementary schoolers

were scared of Kazuma Akiba,

since he stalked Naoya Bando.

They'd think, "Oh, it's Akiba,"

then look away as he passed by.

What's new about that?

After passing by,

the students would look back.

On the side of the man's neck

was a large birthmark, apparently.

A birthmark?

Did Kazuma Akiba have one on his neck?

He didn't.

At the time, they told their parents,

who reported it to the police.

But it was dismissed because

it was children's testimony.

It's become even more likely

that it wasn't Kazuma Akiba

However, it still cannot be considered

conclusive evidence.

The fact that Kazuma Akiba's face

couldn't be identified at the scene,

and now there's new testimony.

Overall, this counts

as sufficient evidence!

The prosecution doesn't see it that way.

Now, now.

Prosecutor Furukawa has a point.

Everyone is in agreement

that a retrial should be held.

Conclusive evidence is needed.

What is it, Ando?

Ms. Onozaki, please call

Mr. Hatori immediately.

I want to check something

in Tomoyo's apartment.

Huh?

Right away.

Ms. Onozaki is 150 cm tall,

which is the same height as Tomoyo.

Please stand on this and open the vent.

Oh Sure.

I'll support you just in case.

Thank you.

Excuse me.

Alright.

Oh!

There it is! Just as I thought.

That's it!

Wow.

Her whole apartment

was tidy and well-kept.

However, only the washbasin and this

were not neatly aligned here.

I think the force of the fall

caused it to topple.

My daughter stood on this

while trying to hide her tablet,

lost her balance, and fell

Hiding it here means Tomoyo was trying to

say something important when calling 110.

Find anything?

I'm not seeing anything unusual

Hm?

What's this?

Hm?

"Crime Prevention Consultant

Haruhiko Kiuchi."

There's a video.

Probably footage from the workshop

Tomoyo was helping out with.

I'm a crime prevention consultant.

My name is Haruhiko Kiuchi.

Thank you very much for coming today.

Now then, please take a look

at the first page.

"It's okay."

"Really, it's fine."

No!

People who say those things

are the most vulnerable! Got it?

A phone call from your son is a scam.

Your son is a scam.

Your son is a scam.

What would they do if their son

really did call them?

I'm glad I had a daughter.

There are cases where they claim

to be a daughter.

Don't say more than you need to.

Huh? What's this?

It looks like that Mr. Kiuchi guy

is following a woman.

Tomoyo must have recorded this.

But, why would Tomoyo

do something like that?

The woman is Yasuyo Ueki, who previously

attended a seminar on phone scams.

This video was filmed on October 18th.

Someone broke into

Ms. Ueki's house after this.

The culprit was never caught.

Others who attended the workshop

were also victims of robbery.

These also remain unresolved.

In other words

Camouflage.

Haruhiko Kiuchi posed

as a crime prevention consultant,

became friendly with the elderly, learned

about their finances, environment,

and behavioral patterns, and then broke

into their homes, repeatedly robbing them.

I believe Tomoyo was investigating

Kiuchi's suspicious behavior.

The day of the workshop and her death,

Tomoyo left partway through.

When I spoke with the staff,

I learned Tomoyo was checking

the list of workshop participants.

Two of the participants had been victims.

Ms. Hatori.

What are you up to?

Ah Nothing really.

Tomoyo was reportedly terrified the moment

she made eye contact with Mr. Kiuchi.

Thinking she'd been noticed, she ran home

and hid the tablet in the vent.

Her unstable footing caused her to fall,

hitting her head.

We have informed the police and are having

Haruhiko Kiuchi questioned voluntarily.

Apparently, his name is an alias.

So the accident happened

while trying to hide evidence.

That's what really happened.

But what does this have to do

with the Maebashi family m*rder?

Why was this anonymous information sent?

Hm? Mr. Ando?

What is it, Ando?

Ms. Yakumo, please zoom in.

Okay.

Please look here.

Haruhiko Kiuchi

has a large birthmark

on the side of his neck.

New testimony says a man seen

near the Bando residence at the time

had a large birthmark

on the side of his neck.

Meaning

it's possible it wasn't Kazuma Akiba.

Also

We received an anonymous tip.

This man,

Haruhiko Kiuchi

has a large birthmark

on the side of his neck.

I see this doesn't surprise you.

Could you

have known about this?

Help came from HQ,

but nobody was able

to find the key evidence.

Was this intentionally covered up?

-Answer me, Mr. Yuki!

-I'll handle this.

Don't pry unnecessarily.

Mr. Yuki.

I still

believe in you.

Please tell me the truth.

You're about to have a kid, right?

Make wise decisions.

That is all.

So that's how it is.

We still don't have all the answers.

Tomoyo noticed the criminal activity,

and desperately tried

to preserve the evidence.

That is indisputable.

She's always been scatterbrained.

But

She had a strong sense of justice.

I'm glad.

Now that I know the truth

I'm relieved.

Thank you so much.

Aki Yoshizawa said to me

My father was k*lled

He was k*lled by the law.

As for what we've been investigating,

I'm shocked all over again.

A truly innocent person was ex*cuted.

Which means,

the real culprit was left free

at the same time.

What would Mr. Hatori think if he knew?

Tomoyo might not have died in an accident.

False accusations led to further tragedy.

The truth from 25 years ago

could shake the very foundations

of the justice system.

Everyone will lose faith

in the justice system.

Yes?

Dr. Yamaji, you have a phone call.

It's from a Mr. Yuki.

Put him through.

It's Hidetoshi.

There's something I'd like

to discuss with you.

Let's talk in person.

Okay.

Then, how about tomorrow night?

Are you free?

Yes.

Alright then.

Please meet me in the lobby

of Centreve Hotel at 8:00 p.m.

Very well.

See you then.

HIDETOSHI YUKI

KAORUKO YAMAJI

Doctor?

Ando

Right through here.

Ando

It's related to what happened

25 years ago.

What's happening?

It's irreversible.

The pieces are fitting together.

We'll discover the truth.

Mr. Yuki entrusted it to you.

I am afraid of the judicial world.