A young female online influencer in Japan was stabbed to death while livestreaming on a Tokyo street by a man whom the police identified as a follower with a grudge.
The influencer, Airi Sato, 22, was heard by passers-by screaming “help!” and her livestream went dark, with the sounds of emergency-vehicle sirens audible to those watching. Her audience posted puzzled and worried reactions, including urgent pleas like “Where did she go?” and “Someone help!”
The Tokyo police said Wednesday that they had charged Kenji Takano, 42, with murder on suspicion he carried out the attack, which took place the day before in a Tokyo neighborhood popular with university students. They said Mr. Takano, who was arrested at the scene, had admitted to the attack, though he said he didn’t mean to kill her.
According to the police, Mr. Takano used a survival knife to stab Ms. Sato in the head, neck and torso while she stood looking into her cellphone camera on a busy street. Ms. Sato, a livestreamer who had more than 2,600 followers, was filming herself as she made a circuit of major train stations.
