Who was Lucie Blackman? Wiki, Biography, Age, Husband, Kids, Family, Murder & More

Lucie Blackman was a 21-year-old British woman who went missing in Tokyo, Japan, in 2000. Her disappearance sparked a massive international search and a media frenzy, but it also exposed the dark and dangerous underworld of Tokyo’s nightlife and the crimes of a serial rapist and killer. This article will explore Lucie’s life, career, death, and legacy, as well as the trial and verdict of her murderer, Joji Obara.

Early Life, Parents, Siblings and Education

Lucie Jane Blackman was born on September 1st, 1978, in Sevenoaks, Kent, England. She was the oldest of three children of Tim Blackman and Jane Steare, who divorced when Lucie was a teenager. Lucie attended Sevenoaks School, where she was a popular and outgoing student. She had a keen interest in travel and foreign cultures, especially Japan. She also enjoyed music, dancing, and fashion.

After finishing school, Lucie worked as a flight attendant for British Airways for two years. She loved her job and the opportunity to see different places and meet new people. She also had a long-term boyfriend, Scott Chance, whom she met through work.

Career as a Hostess in Tokyo (Real Story)

In May 2000, Lucie decided to quit her job at British Airways and travel to Japan with her friend Louise Phillips. They both wanted to experience a different culture and lifestyle, and they had heard that they could make good money working as hostesses in Tokyo’s bars and clubs. Hostesses are paid to entertain male customers by drinking, chatting, and flirting with them, but not to have sex with them.

Lucie and Louise arrived in Tokyo on a 90-day tourist visa and found a job at Casablanca, a hostess club in the Roppongi district. Roppongi is known for its nightlife and entertainment venues, catering to wealthy foreigners and Japanese businessmen. Lucie and Louise worked from 9 pm to 3 am, six nights a week. They earned about £100 per night, plus tips and commissions from the drinks they sold. They also had to go on paid dates (dohan) with some of the customers, usually for dinner or karaoke before going to the club.

Lucie enjoyed her work as a hostess and adapted well to Japanese culture. She learned some basic phrases in Japanese and made friends with other hostesses and customers. She also sent regular emails and phone calls to her family and boyfriend back home, telling them about her adventures and plans.

BIO, Wiki, Husband, Obituary

Disappearance and Murder

On July 1st, 2000, Lucie went on a dohan with a customer who called himself Akira Takagi. He claimed to be the president of an import-export company and offered to pay Lucie £500 for the date. Lucie agreed and told Louise that she would meet her at the club later that night. She also called her boyfriend Scott and told him that she loved him.

However, Lucie never showed up at the club or contacted anyone again. The next day, Louise received a phone call from Takagi, who said that Lucie had joined a religious cult and would never see her again. He also said that he had given Lucie £10,000 as a farewell gift.

Louise was alarmed by this strange call and contacted Lucie’s family in England. They immediately flew to Tokyo to look for Lucie and reported her missing to the police. They also launched a media campaign to raise awareness of Lucie’s case and offered a £100,000 reward for any information.

The Japanese police initially treated Lucie’s disappearance as a runaway case or a possible suicide. They were reluctant to investigate Takagi or search his properties without solid evidence or a warrant. They also faced cultural and linguistic barriers in dealing with foreign media and the hostess industry.

Meanwhile, Lucie’s family hired private investigators and lawyers to help them find Lucie. They also received support from the British government and celebrities such as Richard Branson and Paul McCartney. They faced many challenges and frustrations along the way, such as false leads, hoaxes, threats, scams, and criticism from some quarters.

The breakthrough came in February 2001, when the police received an anonymous tip that led them to a seaside apartment owned by Takagi in Miura, Kanagawa Prefecture. There they found hundreds of videotapes showing Takagi drugging, raping, and torturing various women in his apartment. They also found Lucie’s passport, credit cards, driver’s license, clothes, shoes, jewelry, and hair extensions.

The police then searched a nearby cave where they found Lucie’s dismembered body buried in concrete blocks. Her head was wrapped in tape with two plastic bags over it. Her cause of death could not be determined due to the advanced state of decomposition.

The police arrested Takagi on April 6th, 2001, on charges of abduction, rape, and murder. They also discovered his real identity: Joji Obara, a 48-year-old Korean-Japanese businessman and property owner. Obara had a history of sexual violence and had been accused of killing an Australian woman, Carita Ridgway, in 1992, and raping eight other women between 1994 and 2000.

Trial and Verdict

Obara’s trial began on July 4th, 2001, and lasted for six years. It was one of the longest and most complex trials in Japanese history, involving over 100 witnesses, 1,400 pieces of evidence, and 20,000 pages of court transcripts. Obara pleaded not guilty to all charges and maintained his silence throughout the trial. He also fired several lawyers and filed numerous appeals and motions to delay the proceedings.

On April 24th, 2007, the Tokyo District Court found Obara guilty of multiple rape charges and manslaughter for Ridgway’s death, but acquitted him of Lucie’s rape and murder for lack of direct evidence. He was sentenced to life imprisonment.

Lucie’s family and the prosecution appealed the verdict, arguing that there was enough circumstantial evidence to link Obara to Lucie’s death. On December 16th, 2008, the Tokyo High Court overturned the acquittal and convicted Obara of abducting Lucie, raping her while she was unconscious, and dismembering and disposing of her body. The court upheld the life sentence.

Obara appealed again to the Supreme Court of Japan, but his appeal was rejected on April 21st, 2011. His conviction and sentence became final and he was transferred to a maximum-security prison in Saitama Prefecture.

Netflix Documentary- Missing: The Lucie Blackman Case

Missing: The Lucie Blackman Case is a new documentary on Netflix that tells the true story of a British woman who disappeared in Tokyo in 2000. The documentary follows the investigation into Lucie’s case, which revealed the crimes of a serial rapist and killer who preyed on foreign women working as hostesses in Japan’s nightlife industry.

The documentary also features interviews with Lucie’s father, who never gave up on finding his daughter, and the Japanese police, who faced many challenges and obstacles in solving the case. The documentary is a gripping and disturbing account of one of the most notorious criminal cases in Japanese history.

Legacy and Impact

Lucie’s case had a profound impact on both Japan and Britain. It raised awareness of the dangers and exploitation faced by foreign women working as hostesses in Japan. It also exposed the flaws and challenges of the Japanese criminal justice system, such as the lack of victim protection, the slow pace of investigation and trial, the difficulty of obtaining evidence and warrants, and the cultural differences between Japan and other countries.

Lucie’s case also inspired several books, documentaries, films, and songs. Some of the notable works include:

• People Who Eat Darkness: The Fate of Lucie Blackman by Richard Lloyd Parry (2011), a non-fiction book that chronicles Lucie’s case in detail and explores the social and psychological aspects of Obara’s crimes.
• Missing: The Lucie Blackman Case (2023), a Netflix documentary that features interviews with Lucie’s father, the Japanese police, and journalists who followed the case.
• Tokyo Vice (2020), an HBO series based on the memoir of Jake Adelstein, an American journalist who covered Lucie’s case and other crime stories in Japan.
• The Sun Also Sinks (2006), a novel by Michael Zielenziger that fictionalizes Lucie’s case and examines the dark side of Tokyo’s nightlife.
• “Lucie” (2001), a song by French singer Pascal Obispo that pays tribute to Lucie and expresses sympathy for her family.

Lucie’s family also established the Lucie Blackman Trust in 2001, a charity that provides support to British nationals in crisis overseas. The trust helps with issues such as missing persons, murder, manslaughter, kidnapping, sexual assault, imprisonment, repatriation, and legal assistance.