There is a specific kind of isolation built into the architecture of a Japanese love hotel.

You enter a soundproof room, you pay through frosted glass, and you vanish into the neon-soaked streets.

But in July 2023, the anonymity of Sapporo’s Susukino red-light district was weaponized to hide a flawless, horrifying crime.

​This week on Homocidal Tendency, we are breaking down one of the most twisted psychological horror stories in modern Japanese true crime: the Sapporo headless corpse case.

When 62-year-old Hitoshi Ura was found decapitated in Room 202 of the Hotel Let's, investigators were left hunting a phantom caught on CCTV rolling a heavy black suitcase out the front door.

But the true terror of this case isn't just the two-hour mutilation inside the love hotel it’s what happened when 29-year-old Runa Tamura brought that suitcase home to her parents.

​Join Matt for a deep dive into the suffocating, dark psychology of the Tamura family, a prominent psychiatrist's unbelievable cover-up, a mother's signed "slave" contract, and a Japanese justice system verdict that left an entire nation stunned.

​Topics Covered in This Episode:

• ​The architecture and cultural anonymity of Japanese love hotels
• ​The josou (cross-dressing) subculture and hidden nightlife of Susukino
• ​The meticulous CCTV tracking of the Susukino beheading
• ​The severe psychiatric delusions of hikikomori Runa Tamura
• ​The chilling domestic dynamic and trials of Dr. Osamu Tamura and Hiroko Tamura

​Support the Show:

If you are loving the dark dives, the 80s aesthetic, and the heavy synth vibes, please take a second to rate and review the show on Spotify and Apple Podcasts! It is the best way to help other true crime and horror fans find us.

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​Research & Sources for Episode 34:

• ​The Japan Times: Archival coverage of the July 2023 Susukino love hotel murder discovery and the subsequent raid on the Tamura residence in Atsubetsu Ward.
• ​The Asahi Shimbun / The Mainichi: Court transcripts and reporting on the March 2025 verdict for Osamu Tamura, detailing the suspended sentence for abandoning a corpse.
• ​Hokkaido Broadcasting Co. (HBC): Coverage of the CCTV footage tracking the suitcase, and the February 2026 appeal trial for Hiroko Tamura.
• ​Sapporo District Court Records (via Japanese Press): Details regarding the ongoing, multi-tiered psychiatric evaluations determining Runa Tamura's criminal responsibility and fitness to stand trial.
• ​Sociological Studies on Japanese Nightlife: Contextual research regarding the tatemae / honne cultural divide and the josou nightlife scene in Hokkaido.

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