Bitcoin Forum

There is no "bail" in Japan.

heh heh

The prevailing logic in the Japanese "justice" system is guilty until proven innocent.

heh heh

Japanese criminal prosecutions have a 99%+ conviction rate.

heh heh

Prisoners in Japan that do not confess are treated "harshly"

heh heh heh

There are some things money can’t buy, but to get out of jail, bail can be an option for some.

Former Livedoor Co. President Takafumi Horie, awaiting his March 16 verdict, paid 300 million yen and was released from custody last April.

Not everyone, however, is allowed out on bail: some don’t satisfy release conditions, or they simply don’t have enough money.

Following are some basic facts about how the bail system works:

Why does the bail system exist?

Like other nations, someone under arrest in Japan is presumed innocent until proven guilty in court, and thus bail is part of an honor system to grant temporary release from custody under certain conditions. The bail money, payable by cash or Bank of Japan check, but not credit card, is held by the court in trust as a guarantee that the accused will appear when summoned.

Who has the authority to grant bail and how does one qualify to receive it?

A judge has the final say on a bail request. Before deciding, the judge solicits the recommendation of prosecutors, who may object to the release of a suspect. The judge must weigh the gravity of the perceived crime, the evidence presented and whether the suspect has a criminal record, poses a flight risk, or is capable of destroying evidence or obstructing witnesses.

Article 89 of the Criminal Code provides that when bail is requested, it must be granted unless there are reasonable grounds for denial.

Suspects accused of murder or other serious crimes that may result in a harsh sentence would ordinarily be denied bail.

The court can also deny bail if it determines the accused poses a threat to crime victims or others involved in a case.

On the other hand, the court can grant bail even if no request has been made. The accused must also be set free if the detention period is unreasonably long. Even under these circumstances, the accused must put up bail money.

Architect Hidetsugu Aneha, who was convicted of fabricating quake-resistance data for condominiums and hotels nationwide, reportedly had a difficult time coming up with 5 million yen in bail last September. He finally managed to pay on Dec. 22, three months after being granted release; but four days later, on Dec. 26, Aneha was handed a five-year prison term. He filed an appeal in January and remains out of detention.

How is the bail amount set?

There is no standardized rate, but 1.5 million yen is generally considered the minimum price, said Yasushi Kasai of the Japan Bail Support Association, a limited liability corporation that provides financial aid to those in detention.

Bail money varies by case. The amount is expected to assure the accused shows up at trial and other court appointments. The final fee is set by the judge.

How much does freedom cost?

Former Livedoor Chief Financial Officer Ryoji Miyauchi, Horie’s right-hand man accused of various white-collar crimes, paid 50 million yen in bail last March.

Yoshiaki Murakami, founder of the Murakami fund, who is on trial for insider trading, paid 500 million yen to be freed last June.

Muneo Suzuki, a Lower House lawmaker ultimately convicted of bribery, made 50 million yen in bail in August 2003. The Tokyo District Court convicted him, but he remains in the Diet and out on bail, which was raised to 70 million yen, while he awaits a ruling on his appeal.

The largest bail amount ever in Japan was 2 billion yen paid by Mitsuru Asada, former chairman of meatpacker Hannan Corp., who was sentenced to seven years in prison in 2005 for swindling the government out of more than 5 billion yen by abusing a government beef-buyback program. He has appealed the ruling to the Osaka High Court and the case is pending.

People charged with misdemeanors have also faced hefty bail.

Both Issei Ishida, an actor arrested for possession of marijuana in 2001 who received a suspended sentence, and Katsuhiko Maeda, a former Orix Buffaloes pitcher charged in a hit-and-run accident and driving without a license last month, paid 5 million yen.

What happens to bail violators?

Those granted bail often have curtailed privileges. For example, they may not travel without notice or contact others involved in the trial. Failure to appear in court as scheduled or violation of any stipulation results in the bail money being forfeited to the court and the accused going back to jail.

Kasai of the JBSA said that while breaking bail regulations is not a crime in itself, doing so will likely make it impossible to be granted bail in the future and leaves a bad impression on judges prior to any trial verdict.

Heo Young Joong, an Osaka-based South Korean real-estate developer convicted in 1991 for his part in a scam that caused the now-defunct trading firm Itoman Corp. to incur huge losses, had his 600 million yen bail money seized when he visited South Korea without permission. He was later captured and sentenced to 7 1/2 years in prison. The Supreme Court denied his appeal in 2005 and he is now serving his term.

Are many people granted bail?

According to the 2005 Annual Report of Judicial Statistics published by the Supreme Court, 12.57 percent, or 10,411, of 82,808 detainees in Japan that year were granted bail.

While some big names in high-profile cases have been granted bail, some charged with less serious crimes have been denied release.

The Tokyo District Court last year denied bail to celebrated economist Kazuhide Uekusa, 46, who was arrested in September for allegedly groping a high school girl on a train in Tokyo. The court decided after hearing objections from prosecutors, who noted his prior sex offenses — in 2005 he was fined 500,000 yen and had his mirror confiscated for trying to look up a 17-year-old girl’s skirt at a subway station in Tokyo.

After four months of appeals, he was released Jan. 22 on 6 million yen bail.



you can see at : http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2007/02/06/reference/innocence-is-presumed-but-bail-is-not-a-given/#.Vb4y-P7MC4x

i like that  :)

At this very moment some little jap is beating the shit out of the Lattemeister and screaming in his face to confess while his partner plans the sleep deprivation regime.

tee hee hee

This is so fuckin' sad.  :'( :'( :'( I'm goin' start a Heh Heh Heh Facebook page so that all others who echo this sentiment could chime in.

Wow what a conviction rate  ;D

Even taking into account peoples' personal feelings about what Karpeles "deserves" I don't think such an obviously corrupt system is something to be celebrated. I was under the impression that part of the value of Bitcoin is the ability to bypass corrupt governments and institutions, so why would you rejoice at their existence?

Karpeles is definitely the one to blame here. I wish he would pay for what his company did. But it feels like he is more like a scapegoat of some sort.
I instead of putting him in jail all money got returned, it would be much better option.

Under Japanese law, you may be arrested and detained without bail for 48 hours by the police on suspicion of having committed a crime. During this period, the police are required to inform you of the crime of which you are suspected, of your right to remain silent, of your right to hire a lawyer at your own expense and of your right to have the Embassy or the Consulate notified of your arrest. 

LOL

That is funny. Obviously you have never been arrested in Japan.

Lawyer LOL. Ever met a Japanese "defense" attorney? Did you know that when a criminal pays "restitution" as part of their sentence in Japan the "defense" attorney gets a cut? One of the key jobs of a "defense" attorney is to find out how much money the accused has so they can report it to the judge and the prosecutors.

The fat man is going to be squeaking soon and all his money will be extracted from him like being stuck in a giant liposuction machine.

Haha brilliant, that gave me a good laugh.

One thing will be very interesting in all this - If he is found guilty & is about to be handed a pretty lengthy sentence in what seems to be pretty bad prison life in Japan - Will he try or be asked to some how negotiate a less harsh sentence?

What I mean is if he's looking at a very long stretch will he somehow remember or be able to return missing/stolen coins? I'm very interested to see if that happens.

An idiot friend of mine experienced the Japanese justice system. Some clown in a bar threw beer on the girl he was with and since the common Western reaction to something like this is an immediate fight he decided to brawl with the clown and all his friends. The police showed up and arrested just him since anybody who throws the first punch in Japan is guilty and he got the standard 72 hr hold where if you don't confess they hold you for another 20 days.

He decided to confess immediately, paid $800 USD and walked out the door. He was in a bullpen with a dozen other arrested drunks and train gropers who all bribed their way out immediately as well. There's no "bail", but for almost every single crime except murder you can just pay your way to freedom which Karpales can do easily though his fine will be a lot bigger than $800.

Whole day i'm reading about how Japan has harsh justice system, and how Mark is going to get what he deserves, and now you're telling me that
it's probable that he will just pay the fine and walk away; this is not what we wanted to hear, not in this case anyway.. I sure hope you are wrong, and he serves serious time.

cheers

Many countries does not implement a "bail system". Actually I think this is very specific for USA.
In USA then can you be balied if you have enough money.
Guilty untill rich.
For all the justice systems, the US was always the most funny one.

I mean no disrespect to my fellow US bitcoiners.

It looks like he's foolishly holding out for a lawyer http://newslines.org/mt-gox/arrested-17/ so likely getting the full nasty interrogation treatment plus whatever they planned on fining him will exponentially grow considering Japanese defense lawyers are in cahoots with the prosecution to extract as much money as possible. The lawyer will find out exactly how much assets he has and that will be the fine the court implements so at least he will be broke, and living in Japan in public disgrace.

So, you thought Bitcoin is for scamming people without consequences?
I am (not) sorry, that you got disappointed.

So what you're saying is that he just needs to liquidate some of hs 400k+ btc and he can skip right out the front door?  Sounds about right for most justice systems in the modern world:D

Not too hard when you take so long to arrest someone.. They probably make absolutely sure someone is guilty.

This is how the 'actual justice' works in almost the world... but we should wait and see what it happen with karpeles (or karpél  ;D).


PS: Take a look at the italian service ( TG5 - mediaset)  - http://www.video.mediaset.it/video/tg5/servizio/553717/arrestato-il-re-dei-bitcoin.html  [Arrestato il re dei bitcoin - Arrested the king of bitcoin]

Do not ever be a criminal or get into it in Japan, cos you'll always be guilty until proven innocent. :(

i'm not getting all this different feedback, is there bail or not in japan after all ???

Why on earth would you think that based on what I said?

Correct. There's only a handful of countries where one can pay a bail to get out of jail. In most countries, prisoners are just waiting for their trial behind bars, and that can last years in some places. At least the time spent waiting in prison is subtracted from the final penalty.
 

He's going to get what he deserves there and then he'll be extradited to USA to face more charges. It's now game over for him and all his hidden btc.

before i posted my reply i searched the net if there really is no bail in Japan and it says Bail is unheard of in Japan

heres what you can do when arrested in Japan :)
http://www.jistec.or.jp/Fellow/AH/Hotline0808_e.html

What else do you mean?
MK scammed people. People want justice. Who else than governmental institution should bring it to him? Do you want a vigilante group to hang him on the next tree?

All the thing they do to the people who commit felonies are good. Because they serve as an example for all the other people in Japan. That is why the crime rate is low, every body is happy and is doing his business. This is a good way how the legal systems should work :)

Well in India, there is something called settlement and if you can afford that , the indian police will take care of the rest, thats all I know  ;D

Why there is no bail in that country?

Mark Karpeles: So, what are you in for?
Prisoner 2: I ripped off a bunch of folks to the tune of millions of dollars. And you?
MK: I simply uploaded a video on YouTube on how to make an apple pie from scratch with my fellow roommate in France.
Prisoner 3: YouTuber, eh?

Then all the other prisons starting setting very, very close to Mark Karpeles until he said, "And spreading PHP." Then, they all backed away to get as far away from him as they possibly could in the small jail cell.