Shimonoseki Station massacre

The Shimonoseki Station massacre (下関通り魔殺人事件) was a mass murder that occurred in Shimonoseki, Japan on 29 September 1999. Yasuaki Uwabe, a 35-year-old former architect, drove a car into Shimonoseki Station and then stabbed passers-by at random, killing five people and injuring 10 others, before being arrested at the scene. Uwabe was sentenced to death in 2002 and executed in 2012. Yasuaki Uwabe (上部康明 Uwabe Yasuaki) was born in 1964 in Shimonoseki, Yamaguchi Prefecture, the son of Masakazu and Keiko Uwabe who were both teachers. He achieved excellent grades at school until he reached high school, failing his university entrance exam the first time but passing it the second time. In 1989, he graduated from the Faculty of Engineering at the prestigious Kyushu University with a degree in architecture. After graduation, he worked in the office for an architecture firm in Fukuoka until 1991, when he received his certification as a first-class architect. He worked in the office for another architectural firm, but soon quit due to his social phobias. Uwabe married in 1993 and opened his own architectural firm, but quit in 1997 due to his social phobias. As he ran out of money, he received a loan to buy a light truck and began work in the delivery service industry, a job which did not require interpersonal relationships. At the same time, he began to increasingly isolate himself, and got a divorce in June 1999. His delivery company was successful until September that year, when his truck was lost in a flood due to Typhoon Bart, and his loan was recalled. He asked his parents to pay for the loan but they refused. On 29 September 1999, at around 4:25 pm, Uwabe, who was still working in the transportation industry, drove a rented car into the east entrance of Shimonoseki Station hitting at least seven people, two of whom died at the scene. As the car got stuck, he exited the vehicle brandishing a kitchen knife and progressed up to the second platform on the second floor, stabbing a further seven people on the stairs and platform.