| May 20 | Saitama cops bust massive child porn DVD operation |
 Saitama and Okayama prefectural police last week arrested the manager of an online porn DVD operation that specialized in films featuring children. (Tokyo Reporter) |
| May 19 | Japan's child kidnapping problem |
 Dozens of American children are abducted to Japan every year-not by strangers, but by parents after messy divorces. (thedailybeast.com  ) |
| May 18 | 5-year-old boy's hand gets caught in shopping mall escalator |
 A 5-year-old boy sustained an injury at a shopping mall in Nagoya on Friday after his hand became trapped in an escalator. (Japan Today ) |
| May 18 | Woman stabbed by stalker despite asking police for help |
 A 24-year-old woman was in a serious condition Friday after being stabbed by a man whom she reported to police for stalking her in Kurashiki, Okayama Prefecture. (Japan Today ) |
| May 18 | 70-year-old woman rescued from toilet after 3-day ordeal |
 A 70-year-old woman has been rescued from a toilet in which she had been waiting for help for three days, Hiroshima police said Friday. (Japan Today ) |
| May 18 | Traditional dance performed at Nikko temple |
 A traditional dance was performed on Friday at an ancient temple in Nikko City, northeast of Tokyo. (NHK ) |
| May 18 | China cracks down on over-the-top anti-Japan dramas |
 China's television regulator has ordered a crackdown on dramas about the country's battles with Japan during and before World War Two and demanded they be more serious, state media said on Friday, following viewer complaints about ludicrous storylines. (Reuters ) |
| May 17 | Bear shot dead after entering school in Ishikawa |
 A bear was shot dead after it wandered into a school in Kanazawa, Ishikawa Prefecture, on Thursday. (Japan Today ) |
| May 17 | Man kills 3 family members, then himself |
 Police said Friday they have found four dead bodies in an apartment in Kashiwa, Chiba Prefecture, in what is believed to have been a family murder-suicide. (Japan Today ) |
| May 17 | Chinese tourists a bane for Japanese hookers |
 Shukan Post (May 24) conveys the difficulties experienced by other parts of the adult-entertainment biz in servicing customers from the communist nation.
A deri heru (“delivery health”) call-girl tells the tabloid that she is often requested to arrive at major hotels in the Shinjuku and Ikebukuro entertainment areas of Tokyo by Chinese visitors. (Tokyo Reporter) |
| May 17 | 6 dead in freighter fire at Wakkanai |
 Six sailors were found dead after a fire on a foreign freighter docked at a port in Hokkaido, northern Japan.
The sailors are presumed to be Russians. (NHK ) |
| May 17 | Employee of real estate company stabbed in Tokyo |
 Police on Friday said that a real estate company employee was stabbed by an unknown assailant in the lobby of an office building near JR Akihabara station. The man is currently in a serious condition in hospital. (Japan Today ) |
| May 17 | Alpinist Miura, 80, off to retake Everest age record |
 Yuichi Miura, 80, has launched his bid to retake the crown as the oldest person to reach the summit of Mount Everest, his management office said Thursday. (Japan Times ) |
| May 17 | Japan chef killed after dispute over meal |
 Japanese star chef Miki Nozawa was killed on the German holiday island of Sylt following an alleged dispute with two disgruntled guests about a dish of fried noodles. (ninemsn.com.au) |
| May 16 | Aoi Festival held in Kyoto |
 More than 500 people in court costumes paraded through the ancient capital of Kyoto on Wednesday in the traditional Aoi Festival. (NHK ) |
| May 16 | Hot for teacher: Osaka hooker just one example of illicit part-time work |
 Earlier this month, the Osaka Prefectural Board of Education announced a six-month suspension for a 29-year-old female high-school teacher who was working as a prostitute in her free time. (Tokyo Reporter ) |
| May 16 | Korean transvestite bust in Yokohama a Japan first |
 Kanagawa Prefectural Police on Sunday announced the arrest of three transvestite Korean nationals for allegedly offering sexual services in Yokohama’s Naka Ward. (Tokyo Reporter) |
| May 15 | Three men rob McDonald's of Y2 mil in Shizuoka |
 Three men robbed a McDonald's outlet of approximately 2 million yen in Hamamatsu, Shizuoka Prefecture, on Tuesday morning.
(Japan Today ) |
| May 14 | Kumamoto firm chairman busted for hiding 86 guns |
 Police have arrested the chairman of a food company in Kumamoto, southwestern Japan, for allegedly hiding 86 modified lethal handguns in his home. (NHK ) |
| May 14 | 7-year-old girl seriously injured by school goalpost collapse |
 Police said Tuesday that a 7-year-old girl was seriously injured after handball goalposts fell on her. (Japan Today ) |
| May 14 | Reward money offered for missing Hachioji host |
 The family of a 45-year-old male employee at a host club in Hachioji City on Monday announced offered a three-million-yen reward for information leading to his whereabouts. (Tokyo Reporter ) |
| May 14 | New thugs on block sidestep the usual suspects |
 Japan's underworld, namely the "boryokudan" (gangster organizations) better known as yakuza, have been targeted with crackdowns in recent years focused on cutting their funding and expanding their criminal liability. But a new type of thug appears to be acting with impunity by operating in a legal void. (Japan Times ) |
| May 14 | Trove of Soseki letters donated to museum |
 Hundreds of letters and other items that offer valuable insights into the thinking of novelist Soseki Natsume and some of his most acclaimed work have been donated to a town government in Fukuoka Prefecture. (Yomiuri ) |
| May 14 | 'Mom, help me scam' wins MPD contest |
 The Metropolitan Police Department has chosen "Kaasan, tasukete sagi" (Mom, help me scam) as the top prize-winner in its contest to find a new name for increasingly sophisticated bank transfer scams. (Yomiuri ) |
| May 14 | Broker in human trafficking details Japan's island of ill repute |
 On occasion, Japan’s tabloid media will profile the infamous Watakano Island, which is accessible by boat in Mie Prefecture’s Matoya Bay. With a circumference of a mere six kilometers, this tiny hideaway is home to a population of 300 people, most of whose livelihoods revolve around one trade: prostitution. (Tokyo Reporter) |
| May 13 | 5-year-old girl run over by truck while cycling in Toyama |
 Police said Monday that a 5-year-old girl sustained a fractured skull after she was run over by a truck at an intersection in Nyuzen, Toyama Prefecture. (Japan Today ) |
| May 13 | 64-year-old deer hunter shot dead by fellow hunter in Miyagi |
 A 64-year-old man who was taking part in deer culling in Miyagi Prefecture, died after he was shot by another hunter, police said Monday. (Japan Today ) |
| May 13 | Tokyo cops bust Internet casino in Tachikawa |
 Tokyo Metropolitan Police on Friday raided a casino masquerading as cafe in Tachikawa City. (Tokyo Reporter ) |
| May 13 | Kumamon leads Japan's mascot craze, but don't mention Pluto-kun |
 They help collect taxes, promote tourism and save the environment, but Japan's mascots cannot escape controversy (guardian.co.uk ) |
| May 13 | Abandoned houses increasing in urban areas |
 The number of vacant houses in urban areas has been increasing, as houses built in rapid succession during Japan's high economic growth period have been abandoned after the death of the original owners. (Yomiuri ) |
| May 13 | Japan's first male porn star for females discusses industry's ins and outs |
 The film "The Other Side Of The Sex," released in February, chronicles the ups and downs of making it as a male porn star in Japan's adult video (AV) industry. One of Japan's 70 estimated full-time actors is 34-year-old Taito Tsukino, who Nikkan Gendai (May 10) describes as the first to perform solely in films written specifically to arouse female fans. (Tokyo Reporter) |
| May 12 | Fire in Shibuya Station arcade disrupts operations |
 A fire in the shopping arcade at Shibuya Station in Tokyo disrupted operations for 90 minutes on Sunday morning. (Japan Today ) |
| May 12 | Assistant police inspector arrested for groping 15-year-old girl |
 An assistant police inspector in Oku, Tokyo, has been arrested for groping a 15-year-old girl on a train. (Japan Today ) |
| May 12 | Priest who gave up on Chongryon HQ 'sorry' |
 Ekan Ikeguchi, the chief priest of Saifukuji temple who placed the winning bid at an auction for the headquarters building of the General Association of Korean Residents in Japan (Chongryon), apologized at a press conference Friday for giving up the purchase after failing to procure enough funds. (Yomiuri ) |
| May 12 | Death penalty: Systemic failings add to risk of wrongful executions |
 Japan's continued resort to the death penalty raises a number of troubling questions. In recent years a cascade of revelations about forced confessions, faked evidence and prosecutors withholding exculpatory evidence indicates that a number of people have been wrongly convicted for crimes they didn't commit. (Japan Times ) |
| May 11 | From poets to prostitutes: Tokyo’s Uguisudani |
 The area known as Uguisudani, located in Taito Ward, is one of the larger red-light districts of Tokyo. Boasting approximately 2,000 working gals with ages that begin under 20 and reach beyond 80, it may be the city’s most diverse. Shukan Post (May 17) dispatches writer Shoichiro Yamafuji to poke around, so to speak, and he winds up taking a journey back in time. (Tokyo Reporter) |
| May 11 | 22-year-old mother arrested after infant's body found in her room |
 Police on Friday arrested a 22-year-old woman after the remains of her newborn son were discovered in her bedroom in Sapporo. (Japan Today ) |
| May 10 | 5 suffer heatstroke as temperatures fluctuate across Japan |
 Five people were taken to hospital to be treated for heatstroke as temperatures fluctuated across Japan on Thursday and Friday. (Japan Today ) |
| May 10 | Looking back at the death of Rikidozan |
 On April 9, Katsuji Murata, the former member of the Sumiyoshi-kai organized crime group who stabbed wrestler Rikidozan five decades ago, died of natural of natural causes after suffering from diabetes. Weekly tabloid Shukan Asahi Geino (May 2-9) looks back at the events that lead to the premature end to the famed grappler. (Tokyo Reporter ) |
| May 10 | 7-year-old girl run down, killed at pedestrian crossing near home |
 Police said Friday they have arrested the driver of a car that hit and killed a 7-year-old girl at a pedestrian crossing in Chiba Prefecture. (Japan Today ) |
| May 10 | Yoshiwara soapland bathhouses banning Chinese tourists |
 According to the Japan National Tourism Organization, a record-high 1.43 million Chinese tourists visited Japan in 2012. This figure represents an increase of 37.3 percent over the year before. Monthly magazine Cyzo says that visitors from China seek out Japanese products since they are viewed to be of high quality, but one item is proving to be elusive: the prostitute. (Tokyo Reporter ) |
| May 10 | Foreign dignitaries honored with spring decorations |
 Former French Prime Minister Francois Fillon, former Namibian Premier Theo-Ben Gurirab and Edgardo Angara, a former Philippine Senate president, received state decorations Thursday along with 20 Japanese from the Emperor at the Imperial Palace. (Japan Times ) |
| May 09 | Groping fantasy goes off the rails; Osaka pervert arrested |
 Wakayama Prefectural Police on Wednesday announced the arrest of a 26-year-old man for groping a woman he thought had given him consent via a Web site. (Tokyo Reporter ) |
| May 09 | Cheap sex still easy in Japan in spite of 'Abenomics' |
 There was a time when the lowest price offered for entry to a soapland bathhouse was 25,000 yen. Even with "Abenomics"those days are long gone. Spa! (May 14) says that in today’s deflationary market there are numerous options whereby customers can engage in foamy fun for an outlay as low as 10,000 yen. (Tokyo Reporter ) |
| May 09 | Bosozoku groups busted for brawling in Tokyo |
 Tokyo Metropolitan Police on Wednesday announced the arrest of members of the Ota Rengo and Konami bosozoku motorcycle gangs on weapons charges. (Tokyo Reporter ) |
| May 09 | Police crack down on schoolgirl services |
 Police have begun cracking down on businesses that employ girls of high school age to provide massage and other services to male customers after the labor ministry called the practice a harmful job, though many companies have simply turned to a "storeless" business model that attracts less notice. (Yomiuri ) |
| May 09 | Uganda singer Iryn Namubiru still in custody |
 Local singer Iryn Namubiru has been arrested in Tokyo, Japan, where she had gone to perform at a music concert. (newvision.co.ug ) |
| May 08 | Psychiatric patient dies after being assaulted by male nurse |
 A patient at a psychiatric hospital has died after being assaulted by a male nursing assistant, police said Wednesday. (Japan Today ) |
| May 08 | Why this Japanese woman turned into a 'plastic surgery cyborg' |
 Meet Vanilla Chamu. She greets fellow Japanese people with a "bonjour" and claims to be from the Palace of Versailles. She's not, of course. Recently, she was introduced on Japanese TV as "Osaka's Plastic Surgery Cyborg". (Kotaku ) |
| May 08 | Sumiyoshi-kai gangster busted for smuggling 1 kilo of stimulant drugs in plum packs |
 Tokyo Metropolitan Police announced on Tuesday the arrest of a member of the Sumiyoshi-kai organized crime group for smuggling stimulant drugs into Japan from Taiwan. (Tokyo Reporter ) |