In the predawn hours of Oct. 1, a fire broke out at an Osaka video parlor, killing 15 people and injuring nearly a dozen others, including one who died later. Kazuhiro Ogawa, a 46-year-old unemployed man who had been in the parlor, was arrested on suspicion of arson and murder.
Media coverage now focuses on Ogawa's troubled personal life and his motives for allegedly setting the blaze, and the building codes and fire safety regulations the crowded parlor violated.
Critics have long warned that so-called private video parlors are not only social hazards that encourage antisocial behavior but are also, like Net cafes and karaoke rooms, dangerous fire hazards that blatantly violate safety regulations.