Subject Arrested For Graffitiing 'Gokú' In The Streets

The Chiba Prefectural Police Department arrested a man who left more than 60 graffiti on electrical poles and walls of residential buildings. Curiously, according to his own words this was not a simple act of vandalism, but he stated that: «He did everything because God told him to».

The detainee, identified as Sakae Takahashi (高橋栄), 42, assured that his divine mission consisted of write words like “Love (愛)”, “Buddha (仏)”, and “Son Goku (孫“吾”空)” to improve community morale. «I wanted the problem kids to reflect when they saw the words and stop causing problems.», he declared during his interrogation.

Before his arrest, Takahashi described himself as an artist in an interview with Fuji Television. As he explained, his graffiti was not simple drawings, but messages loaded with meaning. «I wrote “Love” in places where I detected movements of criminal organizations. It is like a message of friendship for them to reflect on their actions», he commented.

However, the authorities evidently did not share his almost prophetic vision and detained him for property damage. Interestingly, before being arrested, Takahashi was seen painting over his own graffiti, something he confirmed having done after a visit from the police.

In fact, he was asked if his God had warned him that the police were investigating him, and Takahashi surprisingly responded: “No, God didn’t tell me that.». In his statement, the subject stated that his actions were motivated by concern about the deterioration of the environment, saying: “I was bothered by insecurity and thought that kanji could help people change their behavior».

Although his intentions were supposedly noble, the community affected by his actions does not share this enthusiasm, as the building owners had to pay out of their pockets to clean their walls. Thus, the majority expects that the next “divine message” that this subject receives will be the verdict of a judge that sends him to prison:

«There are always people who say things like ‘a heavenly voice spoke to me’ or ‘I’m the reincarnation of God’, right? ha ha».
«God? Rather, it seems that the security of the place worsened.».
«First of all, the first thing is to learn to distinguish what is right from what is wrong.».
«I don’t really understand what you are saying».
«God says he has to go to jail».
«He didn’t put ‘悟空’ (Son Goku), but ‘吾空’, which shows that he doesn’t know how to write well either.».
«I don’t know, it feels like everything was a wasted effort.».
«Son Goku makes no sense here! ha ha».