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He Changed His Face to Escape | The Horrifying Murder That Shocked Two Nations | Lindsay Hawker
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Mar 22, 2025
šŗ The shocking true story of Lindsay Hawker, a young English teacher whose tragic murder in Japan sparked an international manhunt and exposed a killer's desperate attempts to evade capture through extreme measures. š Discover: ā¢ How an innocent English lesson turned deadly ā¢ The shocking discovery in a bathtub filled with soil ā¢ A nationwide manhunt that lasted over 2 years ā¢ The extreme lengths the killer went to change his appearance ā¢ How justice finally caught up with Tatsuya Ichihashi šÆ High-CPM Keywords: True Crime, International Investigation, Criminal Psychology, Murder Mystery, Police Investigation, Criminal Justice, International Relations, Missing Persons, Cold Case, Justice System, Crime Documentary š Don't forget to SUBSCRIBE and hit the notification bell to never miss our latest true crime documentaries! He Changed His Face to Escape | The Horrifying Murder That Shocked Two Nations | Lindsay Hawker #TrueCrime #CriminalJustice #Investigation #TrueCrimeDoc #MurderMystery #ColdCase #Japan #InternationalCrime #Documentary #TrueCrimeCommunity
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0:00
it was a crime so chilling so calculated
0:03
that it United two nations in shock and
0:05
despair a mysterious figure soared to
0:08
the top of Japan's most wanted list and
0:11
in a desperate bid to evade capture he
0:14
deformed his own face to keep his
0:16
identity hidden from the world hello
0:18
everyone my name is Adrien and welcome
0:21
back to our Channel today we're delving
0:23
deep into the disturbing case of tatsuya
0:25
ichihashi and his victim Lindsay Hawker
0:29
this story is filled with unnerving
0:31
details a body hidden in a flower pot
0:34
plastic surgery gone to extremes and a
0:36
Manhunt that spanned years across the
0:38
entire nation of Japan so pull up a seat
0:42
grab a coffee and let's dive into this
0:44
unsettling tale Our Story begins not in
0:47
Japan but in England in the historic
0:49
city of Coventry nestled deep in the
0:52
heart of the Midlands Coventry is known
0:54
for its medieval Cathedral and
0:56
unfortunately its destruction during
0:58
World War II but over the decades it has
1:01
bounced back becoming an engineering
1:03
Powerhouse in the United Kingdom it's a
1:06
Well situated City with easy access to
1:09
both London and Birmingham and most of
1:11
the country is less than a 2-hour drive
1:13
away centry had a lot to offer its
1:16
residents and one of those residents was
1:19
Lindsay Hawker Lindsay was born on
1:21
December 30th 1984 to her father Bill
1:25
and mother Julia Hawker she was a happy
1:28
bright child growing up with with her
1:30
two sisters Louise and Lisa she attended
1:33
King Henry VII school and after
1:35
finishing college she ventured to the
1:37
University of Leeds to study biology at
1:40
University Lindsay excelled academically
1:43
achieving a first class honors degree in
1:46
2006 she was serious about her future
1:48
career but also popular among her
1:50
friends she was nurturing caring and
1:53
successful a woman with a lot going for
1:56
her but before pursuing her master's
1:58
degree Lindsay had an appetite to try
2:00
something new to see a bit more of the
2:02
world so in mid2 2006 she hatched a plan
2:07
Lindsay decided to take a year out of
2:09
her busy schedule to do some traveling
2:11
while working she figured that a year
2:13
out of Education would bring A New
2:14
Perspective to her life and so in
2:17
October 2006 she signed up with Nova
2:20
Japan's largest private English school
2:22
which recruits teachers from around the
2:24
world to teach English in Tokyo and
2:27
Osaka after touching down in Tokyo
2:30
Lindsay was assigned to Kwa a district
2:32
in the edagawa ward she quickly found
2:35
both comfort and excitement in her
2:37
surroundings located only 17 minutes
2:39
away from Akihabara and 22 minutes from
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asakusa there was a plethora of sites
2:45
activities and fun things to do near Kwa
2:49
whether you're into food Parks shopping
2:52
temples or just a good drink Tokyo has
2:54
it all she was in one of the most
2:56
interesting cities the world has to
2:58
offer and she was was loving it Lindsay
3:01
decided to move a little further east
3:03
from Tokyo's Center to a place called
3:06
Chiba the rent was cheaper there and she
3:08
moved in with two other teachers both
3:11
working at another school very quickly
3:14
the three became close
3:15
friends despite loving her time abroad
3:18
Lindsay often thought of home she had a
3:21
loving family A large group of friends
3:24
and a boyfriend back in England the home
3:26
bird often kept in contact through
3:28
Facebook Skype texts and phone calls it
3:32
was 6 months into her stay in Tokyo in
3:34
March 2007 that Lindsay had an encounter
3:37
that would change everything she had
3:39
finished work for the day and traveled
3:42
back to Chiba station before collecting
3:44
her bike as she was unlocking her bike a
3:47
man approached her from behind when she
3:49
turned around the man greeted her by
3:51
saying you are my English teacher
3:55
Lindsay was confused she was certain he
3:57
was not one of her students she
4:00
awkwardly declined to comment but the
4:02
man continued following her she jumped
4:05
on her bike and began to cycle away but
4:07
still the man followed her she sped up
4:11
his walking turned into jogging and then
4:13
his jogging into Running With chiba's
4:15
Many Roads and intersecting walkways it
4:18
was almost impossible for Lindsay to
4:20
shake him off he continued trying to
4:22
strike up a conversation asking where
4:24
she was from and where she studied she
4:26
still tried to lose him eventually she
4:29
she reached her apartment she stopped
4:31
her bike hoping it would deter him but
4:34
the Man known as tatsuya ichihashi had
4:37
been running after her the entire way
4:39
and wasn't about to give up when he
4:42
finally caught up he had a proposal to
4:44
make and despite his strange Behavior
4:47
the offer was simple and on the surface
4:49
innocent enough tatsuya asked Lindsay if
4:52
she'd be interested in providing him
4:54
with private English lessons he said he
4:56
needed help with the language and
4:58
suggested they could meet in a Cafe he'd
5:01
pay her generously by the hour Lindsay
5:03
politely refused her work schedule was
5:06
busy enough and the time she did have
5:08
off was her own to have fun and relax
5:11
tatsuya seemed disappointed but accepted
5:13
her answer then he asked her one final
5:16
odd question he was thirsty after
5:18
chasing her through the streets of Chiba
5:20
could she kindly provide him with a
5:22
glass of water in her apartment Lindsay
5:25
was hesitant reluctantly she allowed him
5:28
into the apartment she thought that
5:30
perhaps this was an opportunity to show
5:32
him she had roommates indirectly letting
5:34
him know she wasn't alone maybe her
5:37
friends could see his face should
5:39
anything ever come up again they entered
5:42
the apartment together and as tatsuya
5:44
had his drink he made the offer again
5:47
this time it came with a price tag he'd
5:50
pay Lindsay 3,500 Yen about $32 per hour
5:55
the interaction would be strictly
5:57
business this was an offer Lindsay
5:59
couldn't refuse although Nova was
6:01
helping her get by in Tokyo she could
6:04
use some extra cash and this was easy
6:06
money she agreed to his request deciding
6:09
to meet him at a coffee shop a few days
6:12
later tatsuya was appreciative he
6:15
thanked Lindy for her time and the glass
6:17
of water before he left he wanted to
6:19
give her one last thing he pulled out a
6:22
pen and grabbed some scrap paper then
6:24
started scribbling a few moments later
6:27
he handed her the note it was a sketch
6:30
he'd just drawn one of Lindsay along
6:33
with the sketch was his name and phone
6:35
number who was this man tatsuya
6:39
ichihashi was a 28-year-old man from the
6:41
city of ichikawa also located in Chiba
6:44
prefecture born on January 5th
6:47
1979 in gefu prefecture he initially
6:51
grew up there before moving to Chiba he
6:53
was born into a successful family his
6:56
father was a medical doctor at a local
6:58
hospital and his mother was a
7:00
professional dentist in his younger
7:02
years tatsuya had Ambitions to follow in
7:05
his Father's Footsteps and become a
7:07
medical doctor but when he failed his
7:09
exams and was denied advancement in his
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studies he settled for a degree from the
7:14
Department of horiculture he graduated
7:17
from Chiba University in
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2005 despite having a degree tatsuya
7:22
didn't make any effort to find work
7:24
instead he lived on an allowance of
7:26
100,000 Yen about $920
7:30
a month from his parents he was
7:32
described as a loner with an obsession
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for physical fitness regularly attending
7:37
his local gym and cycling over 25 kilom
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every day he was known to be reclusive
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and rebellious with no intention of
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finding work back to Lindsay's apartment
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after handing her the sketch with his
7:49
name and number tatsuya thanked her
7:51
again and left Fast Forward several days
7:54
to Saturday March 24th 2007 Lindsay had
7:58
contacted tatsuya and they'd arranged
8:01
their first English lesson at a local
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coffee shop CCTV captured the two
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conversing while in line to grab a drink
8:08
Lindsay seemed relatively relaxed but
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she did take noticeable steps backward
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whenever tatsuya moved too close the
8:15
pair sat and spoke for what is assumed
8:17
to be a little over an hour and progress
8:20
seemed good at the end of it tatsuya
8:23
awkwardly pointed out that he'd
8:24
forgotten his money no worries he said I
8:28
only live half a M down the road why
8:30
don't you come by to grab your money and
8:32
then be on your way Lindsay agreed she
8:35
hadn't brought her bike that day and had
8:37
work later in the afternoon when they
8:39
arrived at tatsu's apartment she asked
8:41
the taxi driver if he'd be so kind as to
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wait for her he agreed and Lindsay
8:46
followed tatsuya inside several minutes
8:49
passed and Lindsay still hadn't returned
8:53
that's a little strange the taxi driver
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thought maybe she's had a change of
8:57
plans no worries
8:59
he thought and so he left completely
9:02
forgetting about the incident Lindsay
9:05
failed to show up to work that afternoon
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and even worse she never made it back to
9:09
her apartment her housemates already
9:12
noting that she wasn't at work that day
9:14
started to worry they called the police
9:16
later that night to report her missing
9:19
but Saturday turned into Sunday and
9:21
Sunday into Monday Lindsay's family and
9:24
friends back home in the United Kingdom
9:26
were growing increasingly worried over
9:27
her silence it it was only after Monday
9:30
when she missed a second day of work
9:32
that Panic really started to set in the
9:35
school contacted her parents to let them
9:37
know she'd now missed two days in a row
9:40
straight after that they contacted the
9:42
police it was only then that the police
9:44
started taking Lindsay's disappearance
9:46
seriously police search efforts began at
9:49
Lindsay's home and her housemates were
9:51
the first to be interviewed with luck
9:54
they already had a suspect in mind they
9:56
knew Lindsay went to see a man in a
9:58
coffee shop shortly before she
10:00
disappeared and she'd left his sketch
10:02
back at the apartment this was their
10:04
first clue at around 5:40 p.m. two
10:08
officers were D ESP patched to tatsuya
10:11
home after knocking on his door no one
10:14
answered his neighbors however were home
10:17
and kindly let officers peer over from
10:19
their balcony into tatsuya living room
10:22
there were no lights on but there did
10:25
appear to be someone moving around
10:26
inside and strangely enough his
10:29
detachable bathtub had been moved from
10:31
the bathroom to the balcony on a hunch
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the two officers called for backup they
10:37
were worried that maybe Lindsay was
10:39
inside being held hostage within the
10:42
hour seven more officers arrived three
10:45
hours and nine officers later police
10:47
were getting ready to raid tatsuya home
10:50
then in a surprising turn tatsuya opened
10:53
his front door with a ruck sack at his
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feet in that Split Second tatsuya bolted
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past the police they tried to grab him
11:00
but only managed to get hold of his ruck
11:02
sack tatsuya himself slipped by they
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couldn't keep up with him with the
11:07
buildings narrow and confusing hallways
11:09
he managed to escape and with the
11:11
officers lacking any radio equipment
11:14
they lost sight of him in the middle of
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Tokyo tatsuya vanished into the night it
11:19
was as if he had disappeared Into Thin
11:21
Air police officers investigating his
11:24
property just moments later would be in
11:26
for a gruesome scene there they found
11:29
the naked body of Lindsay Hawker she was
11:32
found buried in tatsu's detachable
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bathtub which he had moved to the
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balcony the tub had been filled with a
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mixture of sand and soil almost entirely
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covering Lindsay with only her right
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hand emerging from the surface she had
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been bound and gagged with plastic ties
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and scarves bruises were present across
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her upper body in her final hours she
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had been subjected to an extended
11:55
assault her possessions were still
11:57
scattered across the room
11:59
along with the body sand and soil in the
12:02
balcony bathtub it also contained a
12:04
decomposing agent to speed up the
12:06
process of
12:08
decomposition flower seeds were placed
12:10
on top to disguise the bathtub as a
12:12
flower bed the seeds would eventually
12:14
feed off Lindsay's body adding to the
12:17
harrowing Discovery it was noted that
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tatsuya had shaved all of Lindsay's hair
12:22
off her head police also discovered
12:24
several wigs in his apartment suggesting
12:26
that perhaps he was a crossdresser this
12:28
Qui LLY became public knowledge and soon
12:31
rumors started circulating suggesting
12:33
that maybe tatsuya had killed Lindsay to
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wear her hair as a wig by the next
12:38
morning tatsuya ichihashi was officially
12:40
a wanted man across all of Japan police
12:43
distributed wanted posters throughout
12:45
the city his face was shown across
12:47
multiple news sites interviews were
12:49
given to anyone who might have
12:51
information and raids were conducted at
12:53
locations of possible sightings but
12:56
despite all efforts tatsuya was nowhere
12:58
to be found
12:59
hardly any sightings of the man were
13:01
reported over the following weeks in
13:04
fact all of them turned into dead ends
13:06
police were so Keen to capture the
13:08
suspect that they released photoshopped
13:11
images of tatsuya wearing wigs just in
13:13
case he was out in Disguise but tatsuya
13:16
was good at remaining unnoticed he was
13:18
so good at evading the police that his
13:20
disappearance turned from weeks into
13:22
months and then into years this
13:25
frustrated Lindsay's family deeply in
13:28
addition to into the Relentless pain of
13:30
losing their daughter was the feeling
13:32
that her killer had gotten away not only
13:35
that but they felt that Japanese police
13:37
were growing lazy and sloppy in their
13:40
investigations it angered Lindsay's
13:42
parents so much that just months after
13:44
her death they traveled to Japan to
13:47
single-handedly assist in raising
13:49
awareness of Lindsay's killer her father
13:52
Bill even met members of the Japanese
13:54
Mafia the Yakuza in a bar giving them
13:57
two bottles of whiskey as as a present
13:59
before asking for their help as time
14:02
went on Japanese police found themselves
14:04
in the spotlight how did nine police
14:07
officers let one man slip by why did
14:10
they take a month to question vital
14:11
Witnesses and did they know that their
14:13
wanted poster had a picture 7 years out
14:16
of date police and the Hawker family
14:18
began to argue and soon British and
14:21
Japanese media were involved too
14:23
meanwhile tatsuya was still out there he
14:26
had actually traveled across most of
14:28
Japan during his time on the Run ranging
14:30
from alori in the North to the southern
14:33
island of okanawa tatsuya remained
14:36
unnoticed he even lived on a remote
14:38
island in a concrete bunker at times to
14:40
avoid detection a year after Lindsay's
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death in 2008 and through 2009 tatsuya
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found himself in Osaka located 250 Mi
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west of Tokyo Osaka is a large Port City
14:55
and a commercial center it's known for
14:57
its modern architecture night life and
14:59
Hardy Street food during this time
15:02
tatsuya routinely lived in internet
15:04
cafes and worked on construction sites
15:06
to get by with the money he saved he put
15:09
it toward plastic surgery to change his
15:11
appearance and avoid being caught he had
15:14
already changed his appearance through
15:16
self-mutilation cutting off his moles
15:19
using scissors to cut part of his lower
15:20
lip and threading a string through his
15:22
nose to alter its shape by the summer of
15:26
2009 police were desperately trying to
15:28
find
15:29
tatsuya the National Police agency
15:31
raised the cash reward for information
15:34
leading to his arrest from 1 million to
15:36
10 million yen they also released a new
15:39
statement advising that it was believed
15:40
tatsuya had plastic surgery to alter his
15:43
appearance and that people should be on
15:45
the lookout for similarities and it
15:47
worked in October 2009 a plastic surgeon
15:51
in ngoya informed police that he
15:53
believed he had just worked on tatsuya
15:56
foolishly tatsuya had agreed to have
15:58
before before and after photos taken
16:01
these photos were shared with the police
16:03
and eventually the world this rattled
16:05
tatsuya he knew the newly released
16:07
photos had blown his cover it was so
16:10
successful that one of his colleagues at
16:11
a construction site in Osaka recognized
16:13
him tatsuya knew he had to get out of
16:16
Osaka and fast his plan was to flee to
16:19
okanawa as he had done before and take
16:22
refuge on one of the remote Islands on
16:25
November 10th 2009 he discreetly headed
16:28
to a Osaka's ferry port 3 days on a slow
16:31
ferry to kagoshima and he'd be in a much
16:33
safer position away from justice but
16:37
before he could even reach the boat
16:38
tatsuya luck finally ran out a worker at
16:42
the ferry port recognized his face and
16:43
informed security moments later tatsuya
16:46
came face to face with police officers
16:49
they asked him for his name and at this
16:50
stage he knew it was over he told them
16:53
yes I am tatsuya ichihashi the game was
16:56
over he was then formally arrested by
16:59
police and initially charged with
17:00
abandoning a body he would later be
17:03
served two more warrants for rape and
17:04
murder it would take 8 months for him to
17:07
finally meet his jury on July 4th 2011
17:11
his trial began with the outcome pretty
17:13
certain from the beginning deliberation
17:15
didn't last long a lot of attention was
17:18
focused on how Japan's court system
17:20
would punish tatsuya although Japan does
17:23
enforce the death penalty not many
17:25
single person murderers receive it but
17:28
tatsuya will was a well publicized
17:30
figure and many voices supported the
17:32
idea during his trial tatsuya admitted
17:35
that he enticed Lindsay into his
17:37
apartment raped her and then strangled
17:39
her because he feared neighbors would
17:41
hear her screams and call the police on
17:44
July 21st 2011 tatsuya ichihashi was
17:48
officially sentenced to life
17:50
imprisonment for the murder of Lindsay
17:52
Hawker although Lindsay's family had
17:54
asked for the death penalty the court
17:56
felt it was not appropriate as he he had
17:59
no previous convictions and at the age
18:01
of 32 there was still a chance he could
18:04
One Day become
18:05
rehabilitated the trial did not come
18:07
without further Devastation for
18:09
Lindsay's family not only did they have
18:11
to relive her final moments but they
18:14
also had to see new images of Lindsay's
18:16
body something they regret ever seeing
18:20
following tatsuya sentencing Lindsay's
18:22
parents shared the following statement
18:25
we've waited a long time for today we've
18:27
waited 4 and a half years for justice
18:30
Lindsay loved Japan and you have not let
18:32
her down ichihashi you have taken away a
18:35
precious life destroyed a whole
18:37
existence and stolen countless memories
18:40
from us the verdict which puts tatsuya
18:43
behind bars for life was welcomed by
18:46
most people in the nation and tatsuya
18:48
himself accepted his fate shortly before
18:51
the trial tatsuya had actually authored
18:53
and published a book confessing to
18:55
Lindsay's murder most of his biography
18:58
described how he'd spent 2 and 1/2 years
19:00
on the run and what he had to do to
19:02
avoid detection the book titled until I
19:05
was arrested was offered with all
19:07
royalties and profits to Lindsay's
19:09
family and over 100,000 copies sold
19:12
worldwide but Lindsay's family rejected
19:14
the offer despite tatsuya strange
19:17
attempt at a good deed nothing could
19:19
bring back their daughter Lindsay was
19:21
well-loved successful cheerful and
19:24
irreplaceable she was in the middle of
19:26
an incredible experience abroad doing
19:29
good by teaching others a valuable new
19:31
skill in the end it was her kindness
19:34
that was used against her by a strange
19:36
heartless man she will be dearly missed
19:39
by her parents her sisters and all of
19:41
her friends thank you so much for
19:43
listening to this story today if you
19:46
found this case interesting please
19:48
remember to like And subscribe to our
19:49
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19:54
support us over on patreon we'll leave a
19:57
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19:59
benefits you get by being a member thank
20:01
you again for joining us today and as
20:03
always we'll be right here waiting for
20:05
you in the next one until then look
20:07
after each other goodbye
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