Man arrested for chopping off ballet teacher’s thumb
In a most bizarre story from Tokyo, a man has been arrested after having chopped of the thumb of a ballet teacher in her dance studio.
Hiroaki Hashimoto is a 41-year-old chiropractor who used to study at the school. His motivation, according to The Japan Times, was that, “She harassed me by not informing me of lesson schedules since last August… she wouldn’t let me study”.
Hashimoto pushed the 24-year-old to the floor and held her by the throat until she passed out. He proceeded to cut of her thumb using “a hammer and tools” and then phoned the police to confess.
When police arrived they found the teacher on the floor surrounded by blood and they arrested the man on the spot.
Graham Spicer, aka ‘Gramilano’, is a writer, director and photographer based in Milan. He was a regular columnist for Opera Now magazine and wrote for the BBC until transferring to Italy. His articles have appeared in various publications from Woman’s Weekly to Gay Times, and he wrote the Danza in Italia column for Dancing Times magazine. Graham was the historical advisor on Codice Carla, the 2023 documentary on Italian ballerina Carla Fracci.
Graham also works as a dance photographer, and his photos have appeared in many books, theatre programmes, and magazines, including Dancing Times, Dance Spirit and Ballet2000, as well as all the major Italian newspapers.
He is a member of the Dance Section of The Critics’ Circle.
Sadly, insane people are everywhere.
Craziness even in ballet studios.
Not that I wasn’t tempted a time or two but, really.
Oh my God!
There is something in the ‘ballet’ context that changes everything… I mean, for an opera course it would almost be expected, wouldn’t it?
I hope you are speaking tongue in cheek! God knows opera is so more dramatic and violent but I’m even appalled at people flinging things at the artists! I’ve been to Italian operas and ballets and audiences are more “expressive”! I’ll be curious what the perpetrator’s motive was! Keep us posted my wonderful reporter of the arts!
Guess it could have been worse. Clearly the teacher knew that the man had BIG issues.
Really, this should have happened in Florida.
isn`t it customary in the Japanese Mafia to cut off your enemys thumb…