NAGOYA - A former elementary school teacher who managed an online group of educators involved in covert filming and image sharing has been sentenced to two years and six months in prison, in a case that has also raised concerns at universities training future teachers.
The Nagoya District Court on April 16 handed the custodial sentence to Yuji Wada, 42, a former elementary school teacher in Nagoya, who was charged with violating the law punishing the filming of sexual images and related offenses.
According to the indictment and other court documents, Wada secretly photographed the underwear of a nine-year-old girl during an off-campus school activity in 2024 and shared the images with a social media group made up of teachers.
Messages exchanged within the group included comments such as, 'I'm glad we can gather as lolicon teachers,' and, 'Let's make sure we don't get caught.'
Seven teachers were members of the group, which had been created and managed by Wada.
In its opening statement, prosecutors said Wada had begun secretly filming the underwear of female pupils several years before the incident. He later started contacting people online with similar sexual interests.
Only those confirmed to be teachers and considered trustworthy were invited into an encrypted messaging app, where members exchanged secretly taken photos and videos.
The presiding judge said Wada had shared images of children he was supposed to protect with numerous people, creating a dangerous situation in which the material could be misused in unknown ways, calling the conduct despicable.
The court also referred to Wada's role in establishing the group, highlighting the seriousness of the crime.
It said there was no room for leniency for his selfish motives, which showed no regard for the feelings of the children involved.
Seven teachers have been arrested and indicted in connection with the case. So far, two have received guilty verdicts, including two defendants — Wada among them — who were given prison sentences.
The scandal has also cast a shadow over institutions that train future educators.
'I feel anger toward those who committed these crimes,' said Tetsuya Igarashi, a professor at Aichi University of Education.
He said the case has already caused practical difficulties.
'Even during teaching practice, some forms of photography that had previously been allowed are no longer possible,' Igarashi said.
Students aiming to become teachers also expressed unease.
'People tell us to be careful because someone like that could be among our classmates. I want to become a teacher who can protect students,' one student said.
'Teachers are supposed to be trusted, so I hate seeing that trust destroyed,' another said.
The university has begun new measures, while acknowledging that ethics education alone cannot fully solve the problem.
Igarashi said the university has decided to devote one class session to preventing sexual violence against children and students. It has also begun requiring students to submit written pledges stating they will keep children safe.
At the same time, he noted the difficulty of identifying such risks in advance.
'Few people openly live their lives declaring such preferences. It is extremely difficult to detect this either at university or during teacher recruitment examinations,' he said.
Source: Nagoya TV News
