Nicola Furlong Death Investigation Update
Here is the latest follow-up on the Nicola Furlong death investigation:"Well-know Memphis, Tennessee Christian musician, Richard Hinds, appeared in a Tokyo juvenile courtroom late last year where it was determined by three judges that he will be charged as an adult in the death of Ms. Nicola Furlong.Mr. Hinds had planned to return to the US on June 20, 2012. Many have questioned the role of the US Embassy in Tokyo in a criminal case involving two American citizens. The second American man, James Blackston (ジェイムス・ブラックストン) (23), also known as “King Tight” from Los Angeles, has not been charged as a suspect in Nicola Furlong’s death but is currently held relating to a separate assault charge of “Quasi-Forcible Indecency” on Nicola’s 23-year-old friend that accompanied her to Tokyo to attend a Nicki Minaj concert.The following is provided from the embassy website:“Japan is an independent, sovereign country. One of the chief attributes of sovereignty is the right of a country to make and enforce laws within its own borders. Just as in America, the government has the internationally recognized right to try foreigners as well as its own nationals within its territory.Anyone who breaks the law in Japan is subject to prosecution under the Japanese legal system. If a person is convicted and sentenced to imprisonment by a Japanese court, this sentence will be served in a Japanese prison."For those familiar with the case, Black Tokyo called into question "two very different forms of reporting. Black Tokyo established a timeline to examine what was said in both reports to separate fact from fiction in our quest for the truth!As previously reported, “Nicola’s life was brutally cut short when she was killed on Wednesday last. Her night had started out on a high — attending a rap concert with her college pal — before they missed their train back to the university where they were staying on campus.Yesterday, her deeply traumatised friend, who cannot recollect the events of the horrific night, arrived home. Police are investigating if the two women were drugged and plied with alcohol by two young American men before being sexually assaulted.Nicola was found unconscious on the floor of a hotel room and she died as she was rushed to hospital.”Ms. Furlong's friend's memory has apparently improved as she provided the following statement during December 2012:[quote]"Speaking via a video link and often in tears, the witness said the event had “changed everything” for her.“I feel anxiety and I find it hard to breathe,” she told judge Masayuki Yamada, as Blackston looked on impassively.“I wish we had not trusted these two men because they have just wrecked everything.”The witness said that on the night of the killing she and Ms Furlong were approached by the two men at a train station, after attending a concert by rap artist Nicki Minaj.“They were nice and friendly,” she recalled, adding that all four decided to take a train into the entertainment district of Shibuya, where they danced and drank in a club."[/quote]The trial for Nicola Furlong’s murder begins next March. Read more of this story here:Court told of alleged sex assault in TokyoCheck back for more on the case that continues to leave more questions than answers! Please feel free to comment below.The following BT’ers contributed to BT’s reporting of the Nicola Furlong death investigation: @blacktokyo, @onmugen @starrwulfe @ogPegasus303Have inquiries, an opinion or rant? Feel free to contact @blacktokyo on Twitter or join the discussion via Disqus below.Related posts:
- Suspect in Nicola Furlong Death Headed to Court
- Nicola Furlong Update: James Blackston Rearrested
- 19-year-old American to be Rearrested in Nicola Furlong Death Investigation
- Trying to Uunderstand the Furlong investigation King Tight’s Family Speaks
- Trying to understand the timeline in the Nicola Furlong case
- Understanding the Charges in the Nicola Furlong Case
- New Details in the Nicola Furlong Death in Tokyo
- Two Americans Held in Death of Irish Woman in Japan
