Coming just days after the introduction of a tougher anti-stalking law, the stabbing death this week of 18-year-old high school student and budding actress Saaya Suzuki raises serious doubts about the ability of police to respond to credible threats.
Though Suzuki had complained to police of being stalked by a former boyfriend, it wasn't enough to save her. Interviews with law enforcement sources and school officials suggest the police response lacked urgency.
Charles Thomas Ikenaga, the 21-year-old man arrested for the murder, told investigators he had met Suzuki through Facebook about two years ago, according to the police.