Man arrested for graffitiing 'Goku' on the streets

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

The detainee, identified as Sakae Takahashi (高橋栄), 42, claimed that his divine mission was to write words such as “Love (愛)”, “Buddha (仏)”, and “Son Goku (孫“吾”空)” to improve community morale. “ He wanted troublesome kids to reflect upon seeing the words and stop causing trouble ,” he said during his interrogation.

Before his arrest, Takahashi described himself as an artist in an interview with Fuji Television. He explained that his graffiti were not just drawings, but messages loaded with meaning. “ I wrote ‘Love’ in places where I detected movements of criminal organisations. It’s like a message of friendship for them to reflect on their actions ,” he said.

However, the authorities evidently did not share his almost prophetic vision and arrested him for property damage. Curiously, 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 replied: “ No, God didn’t tell me that .” In his statement, the subject claimed that his actions were motivated by concern for environmental deterioration, 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 owners of the buildings had to pay out of their own pockets to clean their walls. Thus, most hope that the next “divine message” this guy receives will be a judge's verdict sending him to prison: