The following is a story about how I was drugged and robbed in Kabukicho, Tokyo, Japan on February 23rd, 2024
I was drugged and robbed in Kabukicho, Tokyo, Japan on February 23rd, 2024 – one day after my 31st birthday. I don’t know how to feel about it, but it is especially bothering me right now (2/28/24). Earlier in the day, I was pretty much fine, in fact great. I have been through a lot in my life so there isn’t much that phases me. However, a couple hours ago I felt stinging when I went pee and it freaked me out, sending me down a spiral, which is why I am writing now. I thought I might have an STD from the whores they brought me to after being robbed, luckily I do not.
This story is the result of a series of unfortunate events that led to 10k in gold chains being charged on my Gold AMEX card – with me there, approving the transactions. The men also forced me to withdraw over $1000 from the ATM using my Chime debit card. Again, I was drugged. I do not know if my life was threatened, however, I believe I would remember if it was. This is much more sinister. These people had me under their complete and utter control for 10 hours straight and I have very little to no memory of exactly what happened between the hours of 12AM to 10AM. But, I do remember a few things.
We – my sister, her boyfriend and I get to Shinjuku via train. As we were walking to our destination through the Kabukicho streets, a Nigerian man approached us, asking if we wanted to see the “titty bars”. This surprisingly piqued my sisters interest – I say surprisingly because my sister is not the type of person who is interested in “titty bars” by any means. Traveling to foreign countries makes you want to experience weird things. Anyway, we told the man we would be back later as we were headed towards some other bars in the Golden Gai area.
At the time we had no idea that we had just gone through one of the most dangerous areas of Tokyo – Kabukicho – a hotbed known for Nigerian “touts” drugging and robbing foreigners. I would later learn that this is a nightly occurrence in that area, going back years. However, you can only learn this information if you specifically seek it out online.
The following is a story about what happened to me that night. I am writing this in the hopes that someone who plans on traveling to Tokyo in the near future see’s it. I am also writing this in an attempt to stir a reaction from the Japanese government, to finally put an end to this madness.
It would be our last night out on the town before heading home. I had behaved the entire trip, so I thought it would be a good time to let go and party a little bit. We went to a few bars in Golden Gai and enjoyed a couple beers at Team Deathmatch in Hell, before returning back to Kabukicho. We were immediately approached again by a Nigerian tout, promoting “titty bars”. As I said above, my sister was interested, I was interested, we were all interested, so we agreed and he took us to a “titty bar” called NeoTokyo. This was at around 10:30PM. When we entered there were 6 girls lined up. None of them pretty, all foreign. This place was sketchy, but there were other foreigners in there already so we decided to stay for a little bit to see what it was all about. My sister later told me the only reason she wanted to stay was because she was wanted to figure out if the girls were being trafficked, she even gave them queues in an attempt to tell her if they were in danger. Sounds weird, but she would indeed do something like this. Meanwhile, I was enjoying my time talking to these girls as they brought me “free” beer. At around 11:30PM or so my sister and her boyfriend decided they wanted to go home. We talked for a minute and decided it was safe enough for me to stay and find my way back home.
I believe right after my sister and her boyfriend left is when I was drugged, although I don’t know if it was by the mama-san of NeoTokyo or a Nigerian tout, who was bringing foreigners just like me into the bar. It does not matter who drugged me – they were clearly working together. The last thing I do remember from that night was when I was sitting with a girl, refusing to buy her 20,000 dollars in yen worth of champagne, laughing and saying how ridiculous that sounded. I distinctly remember the look the mama-san gave me as I laughed. And that was it. From that time, until finding myself in a Don Quijote at maybe 7 or 8 in the morning with an aggressive Nigerian man and a woman demanding I purchase chains, I remember nothing. I have no idea what happened or what I was doing during that time period. However, I do have a sense that I was with some people (men & women) at a Nigerian owned bar (I know this because this is where they took me after robbing and surrounding me later that morning – it just looked familiar).
At around 7 (guessing on the time, due to it being light out) in the morning I remember finally coming to, when a Nigerian man said something to me about how we had to go somewhere to “pay for the services”. I remember being utterly confused, but I went anyway. These people made me feel like they were my friends. Again, I was drugged. I would seemingly do anything these people told me to – I was under their complete and utter control for 10 hours straight. I walked with them – going in and out of consciousness. I do not remember arriving at the Don Quijote, but I do remember the Nigerian man selecting from a series of gold chains and talking with the store clerk. I have no idea how the store clerk let this continue, but he or she did, and they may have been in on it. From there I reluctantly, yet willingly (best way I can describe it) gave the clerk my AMEX credit card. Around 2PM the next day I realized two transactions were placed, one for $6,322.93 then another for $3,190.74. It was not until this time (2PM the following day) that I would realize what had truly happened to me that night. The dread quickly settled in. We went to the police shortly after. Our incredible trip was now turned upside down. I felt terrible for my sister and her boyfriend and still do.
I do not remember signing or being coherent for either of these transactions. The next thing I do remember is being in a rage as we left the store, I ripped the bag with the gold chains open and threw them in the streets, while yelling at the two people who had just robbed me. They chased after the chains and picked them up. I remember laughing at them and then again entering a state of nothingness. Again, I was drugged. The next time I came to I was surrounded by Nigerian men at the same bar I mentioned above. They were not hostile towards me – we were just sort of talking and they convinced me that everything was ok. I believed them. Shortly after that remember going back into a rage demanding they put the chains on the counter, pounding my fists on their counter, asking them how they could do this to me. Minutes(?) later I was back into a subdued state. Next thing I remember is being told they would taking me to a place to see more girls free of charge. They did and that was it. I finally became coherent enough to realize where I was – on the ground butt naked with two girls. My sister finally got ahold of me in a terror at 10AM, tracing me to the middle of Kabukicho, less than a kilometer from the place we initially separated. When she and her boyfriend finally found me she knew I had been drugged, but I was in denial. In fact, I told them I wanted to stay where I was.
Can you believe that? I wanted to stay where I was. That is how terrifying this drug is. I had zero memory of what had all just happened to me. At this time, I am certain I was drugged with Rohypnol that night, also known as the date rape drug, or “roofie”, as I displayed all of the symptoms during and especially after the ordeal. This is the drug that they use and it is well known that they use this drug. It has a short half life, so it is hard to test for, and it is completely tasteless and odorless, making it easy to drop in a person’s drink. The people that did this to me have it down to a science, which is why they are able to do it night after night.There are so many what ifs from that night as I look back on it. Things could have gone so much worse for me. If I had fought back I could have been beaten or worse – killed. I could have been sexually assaulted by those men, but I was not. I could have ended up in jail, but my sister found me. I am one of the lucky ones. I am thankful. But I am pissed.
I am pissed off at the government of Japan for turning a blind eye to the dangerous people who flourish on crime and taking advantage of young people visiting Tokyo night after night in Kabukicho. Why do these people go unpunished? Why are they allowed to remain in your country? Why aren’t they at least being taken off the streets? Is it because it only happens to foreigners? Each time these people are successful in taking advantage of an innocent person, they are emboldened. This does not end with me and my experience, it ends in death. And a very public one at that. There are hundreds of stories on the internet that are just like mine, going back years, yet the government and police of Japan have done nearly nothing. Tokyo is advertised and seen as one of the safest vacation destinations in the world. That is a lie and the government of Japan knows it. Shame on Japan and the people tolerating this madness. You must do something now, before it is too late.
by ineedtocrash