i'm actually not surprised that this dude stole so much.. i mean i know some schoolgirl uniforms sell for like.. 500 bucks on the street [this is in japan btw]
BUT u have to realise it is one person and shouldn't be a measure of the whole japanese population.. considering there's like.. i dunno.. 5 times more than my country's population... (probably more...)
but i agree with PSJ.. there are stranger obsessions out there. o_O