Okubo Park has long been known as a spot for street prostitution in Tokyo. That reputation has only accelerated in recent years. A recent arrest makes it clear that the spot isn’t only popular with locals – it’s also drawing in more than a few tourists.
Prostitution tours?
Go out at night to Okubo Park, sandwiched between Shin-Okubo and Kabukicho, and you’ll see both Japanese and foreign women standing around. Some have made previous arrangements via one of Japan’s many deai-kei (matching) apps. Others, however, are offering sexual services on the street to passersby.
It’s a risky proposition, given that street prostitution is outright illegal under Japanese law. However, prostitution is a hard crime to catch and prosecute. An increasing number of young women are taking up the work in Japan, often to pay off large debts racked up at host clubs.
The increase in activity plus social media buzz has led to Okubo Park becoming a hot spot for street prostitution (たちんぼ; tachinbo). Business has grown so bold that some people reportedly even offer “prostitution tours” in the area.
“Foreigners won’t go to the cops”
Because prostitution is illegal, a lot of other illegal shenanigans can occur if one seeks it out. I wrote a while back about two women rumored to operate in the Okubo area, including one who would literally run off with her customers’ money. (You go, girl.)
However, you can only get so brash before the cops cotton on to you. That was the case with a group of four women whom police recently arrested on charges of prostitution.
The group, led by a 20-year-old woman who lives in Shinjuku, reportedly did well for themselves before they got caught. TBS News reports that one woman earned 110 million yen ($748K) over a two-year period. Some of the women reportedly admitted to spending the money on host clubs.
The women’s activities came to light because they were seemingly doing more than prostitution. In this case, police received 11 reports of fraud and theft in connection with the team. In at least one case, for example, a man reported having his wallet stolen.
Others (boldly) reported paying for sex that they never received. One man says that after he paid, the woman’s friends showed up to scare him off.
According to police, the women specifically targeted foreigners and old Japanese men. They reasoned that “foreigners wouldn’t go to the police.”
That appears to have been an unfounded assumption.
The precarious legal nature of sex work in Japan
Some visitors to Japan have the illusion that Japan is a free-for-all sex paradise. The reality is much more complicated.
Nightlife spots such as Kabukicho have businesses that offer a range of services involving female and male entertainers. These include:
- The explicitly non-sexual (concept cafes, girls’ bars), where entertainers and customers are kept separated
- settai or “wining and dining” businesses like host clubs or cabaret clubs, where customers and entertainers sit and drink together; some light contact might be involved
- Fūzoku (風俗) or sex businesses like soaplands and pink salons, where oral sexual activity is allowed
Vaginal sex for money is strictly illegal. However, it often happens through “free” agreements between entertainers and their customers.
Stores that explicitly offer sex for money can – and do – get busted by the cops. I wrote about one earlier this year that was caught promoting sexual services to foreign tourists.
The result is that, as in many other countries, prostitution occurs in an environment rife with abuse and fraud that can be dangerous for both sex workers and potential customers. Traps especially abound for foreign tourists, who could find themselves drawn into a makeshift bar that sticks them with an exorbitant tab.
In other words, don’t pop into Japan thinking you’re entering some sort of sexual paradise. The reality is that, unless you know Japanese or have someone assisting you who does, you risk losing a lot of money – and possibly facing arrest.
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Sources
大久保公園周辺で売春目的の客待ちか 女4人を逮捕 「ホテルで財布なくなった」通報も. NTV News
大久保公園で売春客待ち容疑 女4人逮捕、外国人観光客狙いも 警視庁. Jiji.com
大久保公園に増える売春女性「買春ツアー」も…“一斉摘発”そして“逮捕後の支援”とは. NTV News
“立ちんぼ”行為で集団詐欺か 20代の女ら4人逮捕 インバウンド客狙い売春 1人は1億1000万円稼いだか 東京・新宿 歌舞伎町. TBS News Dig
