Kazuhiko Kato, the Japanese cartoonist known to his fans as Monkey Punch who created Lupin III, a manga series that has found fans worldwide and inspired television and film adaptations, died on April 11. He was 81.

His office, MP Pictures, said the cause was pneumonia but did not say where he died.

Created by Mr. Kato in 1967, Lupin III (it has also been rendered different ways, including Lupin the Third and Lupin 3rd) follows the adventures of Arsène Lupin III, a daring thief who travels the world stealing treasures. Mr. Kato conceived the character as a grandson of Arséne Lupin, the gentleman larcenist and master of disguise created by the French novelist Maurice Leblanc.

Lupin often commits his capers with help from a sharp-eyed gunman, Daisuke Jigen; a master swordsman, Goemon Ishikawa XIII; and a femme fatale, Fujiko Mine. The gang regularly escapes the clutches of Inspector Koichi Zenigata, an Interpol officer obsessed with capturing Lupin.

“I took my inspiration for the relationship from Tom and Jerry,” Mr. Kato told The Daily Yomiuri in 2007, referring to the American cat and mouse cartoon characters. “The mouse, Lupin, is cleverer than Zenigata, who is left gnashing his teeth after failing to get his man yet again.”