GaaSyy

, also known as , is a Japanese politician, YouTuber, and businessman. He was elected into the House of Councillors in 2022 as part of the NHK Party, but was expelled on March 15, 2023 for not attending any sessions of Parliament. The following day, the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department sought an arrest warrant for alleged defamation of celebrities in his YouTube videos. On June 4, 2023, the Metropolitan Police Department arrested Higashitani immediately upon his arrival at Narita Airport on suspicion of habitually threatening celebrities and others.

== Career == GaaSyy rose to prominence in 2022 after starting a YouTube channel where he spoke about alleged scandals in the entertainment industry. Of note was his coverage of the Johnny Kitagawa sexual abuse scandal, where GaaSyy was described by the sexual abuse victim and former Johnny's Jr. member Kauan Okamoto as "the only person in Japanese media to cover the story at the time". His channel gained 1.3 million subscribers before being shut down in July of that year. His success led Takashi Tachibana, the leader of the fringe NHK Party that focuses on reforms to the Japanese public broadcaster NHK, to recruit him for the 2022 Japanese House of Councillors election. GaaSyy's platform included a pledge to work from overseas, and won the election with over 287,000 votes.