A video depicting a violent bullying incident at a high school in Tochigi Prefecture, northern Kanto region, has gone viral on social media, accumulating over 100 million views within a few days.
The footage, showing a male student punching and kicking a classmate in a school toilet, has sparked widespread public anger and prompted a police investigation.
According to Japanese media reports, the nine-second video circulated on platform X shows a male student at a prefectural high school cornering another student in a restroom.
The assailant is seen repeatedly punching and delivering flying kicks to the victim’s head and face.
The scene was witnessed by approximately seven other students who, instead of intervening, were heard mocking and laughing, allowing the violence to continue.
Following the exposure of the incident, the school, local education board, and police were flooded with protest calls. Investigations revealed that the video was filmed last month. The student involved has admitted to the assault and expressed remorse.
The local education board stated they would work to prevent a recurrence and provide proper care for the victim.
Prominent figures have voiced their condemnation. Yuji Mizoguchi, CEO of “REAL VALUE,” criticized the violence and the bystanders’ laughter as “infuriating.”
Former Fuji TV anchor Yutaka Hasegawa emphasized that this is a clear case of assault that warrants immediate arrest and transfer to a juvenile reformatory, rather than just an internal school matter.
Former Saitama prefectural police detective Seizo Sasaki also noted that such incidents are intolerable. However, he urged the public not to engage in “online vigilantism” by doxxing the perpetrator’s personal information, stressing that legal channels are the proper way to handle the case.
