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(株)NECラーニングの辛口ネイティブ講師Mike Lloretから見た日本や日本人についての辛口英文エッセイです。英文リーディング、異文化理解のご参考にご活用ください。

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2009/11/06

Glimpses of Japan(外国人から見た日本)

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  Glimpses of Japan  (外国人から見た日本)
       vol.264          Different Face, Same Incompetence

                                 2009.11.6
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Tatsuya Ichihashi, wanted by police as a suspect in the March 2007 murder of 
Lindsay Hawker, managed to escape by running away, barefoot, from nine police 
officers sent to question him at his apartment. Despite numerous news stories 
about the crime including video clips of the suspect, a 10 million yen reward 
for information leading to his arrest, and wanted posters prominently displayed 
all over the country, the police have been unsuccessful in catching him for 
more than two years. 

This week, it has become clear that the suspect has had cosmetic surgery to 
alter his appearance, particularly to change his more distinctive features. 
He had surgery on his nose in Nagoya on October 24th, and attempted to have 
surgery in Fukuoka in mid-October but failed because he had not made a prior 
appointment. 

It seems that when Ichihashi visited the Nagoya clinic to heighten his nose 
by a few millimeters, it was obvious that he had *already* had plastic surgery 
to alter his eyelids, nose and lower lip and to remove two moles on is cheek. 
Removing moles is apparently unusual for men, which caused one of the staff 
members at the clinic to become suspicious and alert the police…but too late.

Now the police have published a photograph showing Ichihashi's current face 
(altered by the police to remove a beard and moustache). I hope that somebody 
recognizes him and reports it to the police promptly this time, and that the 
police manage to overcome their tendency to incompetence long enough to arrest 
him. 
Unfortunately, I don't have much confidence that this will happen, based on 
the events so far.

What I find especially perplexing is how at least one other plastic surgeon 
managed to miss recognizing Ichihashi when he underwent the surgery prior to 
the Nagoya episode. 

It's not surprising that ordinary people fail to recognize some passerby as 
the person on a wanted poster. The fugitive naturally is trying to disguise 
himself, and is unlikely to be a good match for the wanted poster's picture(s). 
An employer or coworker would be more likely to recognize him, because they 
see him frequently, but they also might reasonably fail to connect him to the 
wanted suspect. 

A cosmetic/plastic surgeon, on the other hand, is in the business of seeing 
and understanding even very small facial features and subtle distinctions. 
It's obvious, too, that a fugitive?if he could find the money somehow?could 
be expected to try to get face-altering surgery. How is it possible for one 
or more cosmetic surgeons to have failed to notice that their patient is the 
fellow whose?very distinctive?face has been on the news and on wanted posters 
for over two years?

Glimpses of Japan vol.264
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