Akira Nishiguchi

Akira Nishiguchi (西口 彰, Nishiguchi Akira; December 14, 1925 – December 11, 1970) was a Japanese serial killer and fraudster who murdered five people in late 1963. The focus of a national manhunt, Nishiguchi's crime spree came to an end in January 1964 when he was identified by the 10-year-old daughter of a potential victim. He was sentenced to death upon conviction and was hanged in 1970.

Nishiguchi's crimes and the circumstances of his capture were the direct catalyst for the creation of the Japanese "Metropolitan Designated Case" system. Nishiguchi also left an impact on Japanese media, becoming the basis of a book by Ryuzo Saki, which itself was adapted into the film Vengeance Is Mine (1979).