Toshio Ōtsu

Toshio Ōtsu (大津敏男, October 26, 1893 – December 27, 1958) was the last Director of the Japanese Sakhalin (1943 – November 11, 1947) and the first and only governor of the mainland Japanese Karafuto Prefecture. After the end of his tenure, the prefecture was abolished with the incorporation of Karafuto into the Soviet Union. Prior to this he was Governor of Saitama Prefecture (1942–1943). As prefectural governor he held the status of a first rank counselor and had the right to meet with the emperor. He was a graduate of the University of Tokyo. After the defeat of the Empire of Japan in World War II, he was initially placed under house arrest by the Red Army. However, soon after the arrival of Dmitrii Kriukov, the new civil administrator of Sakhalin and the Kuriles, in late September 1945, Ōtsu agreed to administer southern Sakhalin on behalf of the Soviets. On January 12, 1946, he was taken to Krasnaya Rechka prison near Khabarovsk. After his release, Ōtsu returned to Japan and in 1951 became the second head of Zenkoku Karafuto Renmei, an association of former residents of Karafuto.