1000sabords

Japan has been plagued in recent months by a spate of kidnappings by pseudo-pedophiles who snatch little girls off the streets and hold them captive. The men's weekly claims these abhorrent kiddy lovers can be spotted at a glance.

National Police Agency figures show that in the first eight months of this year, there were 104 arrests of men who had seized underage girls off the streets.

Abductions have remained an almost everyday occurrence since the start of September.

"Nearly all the cases have involved a man shoving a girl into his car and taking her off to some place quite far from her home. Despite the obvious planning that has gone into these cases, the motives such as 'the girl was cute' or 'I wanted to be with her' are incredibly impulsive and emotional, making them quite difficult to believe," a domestic news desk editor at a major national daily tells Asahi Geino.

Experts say certain attributes make the kidnappers stand out.

"Sexual deviants aren't of any particular age. It's hard to judge them on their external appearance, but if you were to do so, they'd normally look like the type incapable of hurting a fly," Eiichi Tamiya, a former Metropolitan Police Department policeman says.

MPD detective turned writer Takeshi Kitashiba says kidnappers' lifestyles commonly offer clues that help catch them out.

"Guys into videogames that involve rough treatment of women or child pornography are obviously dangerous. A common characteristic of these guys is to be so caught up in their hobby their eyes are damaged by the amount of staring at a computer or TV screen that they do. Most of the abductors wear very strong eyeglasses.

"Another thing raids on kidnappers' homes often uncover is how much they are into fast food. There're almost always wrappings from fast food chains and empty cans of soda lying around. They're so ensconced in their hobby that their eating habits go askew, which also means many of the kidnappers are also obese."

Criminal psychologist Akira Sakuta says changing times have helped in the spread of predatory girl snatchers.

"In the past, when you reached a certain age and were still unmarried, relatives would start plotting an arranged marriage, so nearly everybody ended up getting hitched. But times have changed in today's Japan, and introverts are no longer able to find partners," Sakuta tells Asahi Geino. "There're so many isolated, lonely people out there. Many of them may not turn to crime, but still possess similar feelings to those that do. The number of people out there with these warped sexual ideas is countless."

Sakuta argues that the kidnappers aren't technically pedophiles.

"Rather than being men who love only young girls, they're probably men who choose girls to acts as substitutes for adult women. These introverted guys are incapable of dealing with adult women, so turn their sexual attention toward little children they believe they can easily dominate and control," he says.

Fellow criminal psychologist Akira Fukushima agrees with Sakuta.

"Men lacking social skills and who find it difficult to get along with others have a tendency to develop sexual preferences of this type (pedophilia)," he says. "These men tend to have trouble getting along with others in the workplace and move from job to job."

Pshrink Sakuta warns that middle-aged men shunned by their families, a common occurrence in Japan, induces in them a solitude that could bring on the development of warped sexual urges. He adds that prudishness is a common trait among those who kidnap children.

"They're extremely serious in strange sorts of ways," he says. "Many of them would be appalled by the idea of using a sex service, and are usually disgusted even by foul language."

Psychiatric experts say it's difficult to try and deal with those bearing sexual obsessions for children.

"Sexual tendencies are not easily treatable. Even now we still get people coming to us for help for problems they have with train groping or homosexuality, but we almost never get anybody worried about being a pedophiliac," a psychiatrist tells Asahi Geino. "Unlike, say homosexuals, pedophiles are unwilling to talk to anybody about what they're feeling because just finding a partner is a crime. It takes courage for them to seek help."

By Ryann Connell