This podcast details true crime cases. It contains adult themes and may contain descriptions of violence.

It is not intended for children.

Listener discretion is advised. Thank you for joining me for today's episode of Once Upon a Crime.

This week I'll conclude the series Hookups from Hell,

where I share cases of people who became targets of murderers they met online. The first two cases were love

connections that turned deadly. But in this last episode you'll hear about a man

who preyed on extremely vulnerable people, those who expressed feelings

of hopelessness and thoughts of suicide.

Takahiro Shirashi would connect with these vulnerable people on Twitter, offering to help, but instead

would rob and murder them. When he was caught he'd claim that his victims were

willing participants in their own deaths, but the evidence would prove something

very different.

An additional warning.

This episode includes the topic of suicide.

If you are sensitive to this subject, please use discretion before listening.

This is Chapter 3 of Hook-U-Hook-U-U-Hor-Sherashi, the Twitter Killer. In mid-2017, 27-year-old Takahiro Shirashi was spending a lot of time online.

He had accounts on various social media sites, but his favorite

platform to connect with others was Twitter. That summer he was actively

looking to meet women online, but Shirashi was not interested in a relationship, but Shirashi was not interested in a relationship, but

instead was seeking out women who were particularly vulnerable.

His goal was to meet someone who would be easy to manipulate into providing him with money and possessions.

He believed he discovered a good prospect in 21-year-old Mizuki Meura.

...