042 Naosuke Gonbei: Infamous Edo Period Criminal Murder, Betrayal & Execu. The story of a servant who killed his master and family for money, his capture, public humiliation, and crucifixion in 1721.

Naosuke Gonbei was a criminal in mid-Edo period Japan (died August 18, 1721). His real name was Naosuke, and Gonbei was an alias. He was a servant for a doctor named Nakajima Ryuseki, who may have been Oyamada Shōzaemon, a deserter of the Akō Rōshi. In December 1720, Naosuke was discovered to have embezzled medicinal herbs. Before being handed over to his guarantor, Naosuke murdered Nakajima and his family and stole money to escape.

He changed his name to Gonbei and worked for a rice-milling shop owner. However, his crime was revealed when he pawned the sword he had stolen from Nakajima. After being interrogated by the town magistrate Nakayama Tokitaka, he was imprisoned, paraded through the town, displayed in Nihonbashi, and finally executed by crucifixion at Suzugamori on July 26, 1721.

The official punishment document described him as an extremely heinous criminal who killed his master and his wife, stole from them, and was therefore subjected to public humiliation before his crucifixion. Naosuke Gonbei was depicted as a rare villain in popular literature and Kabuki plays, and a character with the same name appears in *Tōkaidō Yotsuya Kaidan*. It is important to note that the Wikipedia article states it lacks sufficient verifiable references and sources.

https://bit.ly/42znFMT

CC BY-SA 4.0