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Yating Yang

A Japanese man has been dubbed “the crazy key-copying demon” after he copied a woman’s key to sneak into her home on New Year’s Eve.
The housebreaker then spent two hours watching TV, lost track of time, and was eventually caught by the police.
Ryota Miyahara, 34, an office worker from Tokyo, met the unidentified female victim in a cafe where she worked as a waitress.
Miyahara secretly observed the code when a member of staff at the cafe entered the office.
While the member of staff was away, he entered the code, quietly sneaked into the office, found the victim’s bag, and discovered her driving licence.
He memorised her address from the licence and also found her home key, noting the manufacturer’s details and key number.

In Japan, some keys can easily be copied online if you provide detailed information, such as the key manufacturer’s information and number.
Last October, Miyahara ordered a duplicate key, and over the next two months, he sneaked into her home more than 10 times, rifling through her bathroom and bedroom.
“I often entered her home. It is very clean and bright, and I wanted to breathe in the air from her house,” he admitted after his arrest.
On the evening of December 31, Miyahara sneaked into the woman’s home again.
Noticing that her suitcase was missing, he assumed she had travelled out of town for the New Year.
In no hurry to leave, he sat on the sofa, turned on the TV, and watched about two and a half hours of a popular New Year’s Eve TV show before he was caught by the police.
The police found five spare keys in his bag, each labelled with the names of different shops and victims to help him keep track of his targets.
To find them, he would regularly visit cafes and restaurants, watch female staff, then use the same method to steal their identity details, note their address, and order spare keys.
“I have made between 15 and 20 spare keys,” he told police.

On February 19, the Metropolitan Police Department’s Totsuka Police Station revealed that Miyahara had been arrested on suspicion of crimes including trespass and attempted theft.
The victim expressed anger: “If he had something perverted in mind to satisfy his desires, I do not want him to live a normal life any more.”
The case has shocked netizens in China.
One online observer said: “How can a person be so perverted? Art really does come from reality.”
“Japan’s key duplication system is way too loose. You can duplicate a spare key online? This is terrifying,” added another.


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Japan ‘key-copying demon’ breaks into home, watches TV for 2 hours before being caught

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Miyahara was arrested in the home of one of his victims as he sat watching television. Photo: QQ.com

Miyahara stalked his victims and stole their information in Tokyo coffee shops. Photo: Shutterstock

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Serial housebreaker admits to making up to 20 copied home keys by stealing private information of women, branded a ‘pervert’


Serial housebreaker admits to making up to 20 copied home keys by stealing private information of women, branded a ‘pervert’.


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