Japanese Pop Star Stabbed by Crazed Fan

It’s been a weird couple of days. Former Megadeth drummer Nick Menza collapsed and died onstage during a gig. Four people died of suspected bad drugs at a festival in the Philippines. A gunman opened fire at a concert in Austria and killed four people before killing himself. And a Japanese pop star was stabbed by an unhinged fan.

Tomohiro Iwazaki is obsessed with Mayu Tomita as she waited to perform at an event in Tokyo. Enraged that she had returned a gift he had sent to her–she considered Iwazaki a stalker and wanted nothing to do with him–he attacked her, stabbing her at least two dozen times in her chest and neck with a knife featuring an 8cm blade.

Iwazaki was arrested and charged with attempted murder. Tomita is in critical condition.

This is the second time a Japanese idol performer has been attacked by a crazy person. Two years ago, members of the group AKB48 were attacked by a man with a saw—a saw!–at a meet-and-greet event.