1944 killing and cannibalization of American airmen The Chichijima incident , also known as the Ogasawara incident (小笠原事件), was the 1944 murder of eight American prisoners of war on Chichijima, in the Bonin Islands, by their Japanese captors. The massacre was ordered by Lieutenent General Yoshio Tachibana. Japanese officers later cannibalized four of the victims, believing it would provide them health benefits. 322,418 views on January 8, 2016 — Wikipedia's most-read article that day. Also most read: Jenna Dewan, Steven Avery, Tom Lehrer, Making a Murderer. Wiki link