A 23-year-old cosplayer in Japan faces charges for cutting off her boyfriend’s ring finger and storing it in alcohol in their refrigerator.
Police responded to an emergency call in January from a 21-year-old man in Osaka who reported being assaulted by his girlfriend, Saki Sato, after an argument about breaking up.
Officers found the man with injuries on his left cheek and nose when they arrived at the apartment.
The man told police Sato had cut off his left ring finger. Police later found the finger preserved in alcohol inside the refrigerator.
Sato received formal indictment on April 21, 2025, on three counts of assault. She denies the charges and claims her boyfriend cut off his own finger.
The couple began dating in 2023 when the victim, then 19, discovered Sato through her online cosplay activities.
They moved in together by July 2024.
Investigation showed Sato kept the man’s bank book and smartphone in her safe, requiring him to ask permission to use them.
The first violent incident occurred last September when Sato cut part of the victim’s left nipple.
The finger amputation happened on October 19, 2024, when Sato allegedly said she didn’t want him marrying another woman and exchanging rings before cutting his finger.
The victim didn’t report these incidents earlier because he found Sato attractive and couldn’t leave her.
Japanese and Chinese social media users have compared Sato to a “yandere” character from anime—someone who appears sweet initially but later shows violent obsession toward their love interest.
