News On Japan

Mother of AKB48 member Minami Takahashi arrested for obscene acts with 15-year-old boy

Tokyo Reporter — 2012-02-07 22:47:04

The Tokyo Metropolitan Police confirmed on Tuesday the arrest of the 44-year-old mother of Minami Takahashi, a member of the popular singing group AKB48, for performing obscene acts with a junior-high school boy, reports Jiji Press (Feb. 7). "I was compelled to do several terrible things," the mother was quoted by police in admitting to the allegations. She was fined 500,000 yen for violating an ordinance regarding the healthy development of youths. (Tokyo Reporter)

Cat cafes bare fangs over 'curfew'

Yomiuri — 2012-02-07 21:06:03

Operators of so-called cat cafes, where visitors can play with cats in a relaxing atmosphere, are upset over a revision of the enforcement regulations of the Animal Protection Law that would prohibit the display of cats late at night starting June 1. The aim of the revision is to keep pet stores in busy shopping districts from displaying puppies and kittens for sale later than 8 p.m. Cat cafe operators are protesting the government's plan to prohibit all forms of "display" irrespective of the type of business. "Cats are nocturnal animals. [They] are adults and already get enough rest [during the day]," the operator of one cat cafe said. I recently visited Neko no Iru Kyukeijo 299, a cat cafe in Ikebukuro, Tokyo, at about 8 p.m. There were about 10 customers, some taking pictures of cats with their cell phones and others playing with cats. (Yomiuri)

Shops selling dried herbs spiked with stimulant chemicals on the increase

Japan Times — 2012-02-07 21:06:03

Dried herbs mixed with stimulant chemicals carefully packaged to dodge drug laws are gaining in popularity among young Japanese, leading in turn to a drastic increase in the shops selling such products. These "dappo habu" (law-evading herbs) contain stimulant materials whose chemical components are slightly different from those prohibited by drug laws. The Tokyo Metropolitan Government identified two shops selling such products in fiscal 2009. As of last Friday, 89 such shops were in existence, many of them in Shinjuku and Shibuya, areas popular with young people. (Japan Times)

Japan times: Couple gets off with rock & roll-on armpit sex

Tokyo Reporter — 2012-02-07 06:10:23

What kind of (unexpected place' are we talking about? Doing it outdoors? Or on the dance floor of her club, in front of the other patrons? "No, no, that's not what I meant," she replies. "By 'place,' I mean a part of the body. You see, I had an orgasm while getting screwed in my armpit!!" But it seems there are some women whose armpits happen to be erogenous zones. Lick them in the right place --- shall we call it their U-spot? (Tokyo Reporter)

Tokyo Gate Bridge to open to traffic on Feb 12

Japan Today — 2012-02-06 23:51:44

Tokyo's newest landmark, the Tokyo Gate Bridge, will open to traffic on Feb 12. The 2,618-meter-long truss bridge is 87.8 meters high and spans Tokyo Bay, linking Wakasu in Koto Ward with the Jonanjima Seaside Park in Ota Ward. The central span is 440 meters. The bridge has been nicknamed the "dinosaur bridge" by Japanese media because of its unusual shape. It looks like two dinosaurs facing off. It has four lanes and walkway that is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The bridge spans a major sea lane into Tokyo Port, but its height had to be restricted to below 100 meters because planes fly over it on their way to and from Haneda Airport. (Japan Today)

'Herbivore men' causing Japan's population to shrink

bangstyle.com — 2012-02-06 23:33:31

Unlike China, Japan's population is in danger of shrinking dramatically. The main reasoning behind this development is what is being called "herbivore men." This type of man is said to have no desire in having sex or developing relationships. About 36 percent of males from ages 16-19, according to the Japan Family Planning Association, have said that they do not desire to have that sort of relationship; however, young men are not the only ones to develop those feelings. Fifty-nine percent of women in the same age group report not wanting to have sex. There have been different reasons given as to why these people do not want to have sex. Answers from men in this generation varied. They said that developing a relationship causes too much work, and that it would also take away from how they normally like to spend their time. Other speculations about the decrease in sex interests are that the individuals are becoming more obsessed with technology and virtual relationships than real ones. (bangstyle.com)

Hole lotta fun as Japanese dig for Golden Shovel

Reuters — 2012-02-06 23:24:52

Over a thousand people gathered on the outskirts of Tokyo, shovels and ladders in hand. Their goal: to dig their way to victory in the Japan All-National Hole Digging Competition, and claim the coveted Golden Shovel. The annual contest, now in its 12th year, drew 259 teams from around the country at the weekend to test their hole-digging prowess and claim awards for the deepest hole, the most creative hole and the most original costume worn during the digging. At the shriek of a whistle, contestants -- some dressed as skeletons or wearing Arabian-style headgear -- began digging frantically, tossing earth behind them as their shovels bit into the soil. Some went for creativity, carving a heart out of the ground. Others aimed at depth, using buckets to haul up the earth. (Reuters)

U.S. reaches deal to avoid Japan, EU trade sanctions

Reuters — 2012-02-06 23:24:52

The United States said on Monday it has struck a deal sparing U.S. exporters from hundreds of millions of dollars in European and Japanese trade retaliation in a dispute over how Washington calculates anti-dumping duties on steel and other goods. "I am proud to announce today that we have finally put these burdensome and potentially damaging trade disputes behind us," U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk said in a statement on the "zeroing" deal struck with the European Union and Japan. "What this means for the American people and the country as a whole is that American farmers and businesses can invest in job-creating export markets without the uncertainty of possible trade retaliation," Kirk said. The United States has lost numerous cases at the World Trade Organization in the past decade over a practice called "zeroing" used to calculate anti-dumping duties on products it says are being sold in the United States at less than fair value. (Reuters)

Cuisine targeted for UNESCO list

Japan Times — 2012-02-06 23:15:57

An ad hoc committee set up by the Cultural Affairs Council endorsed a plan Monday to get Japanese food culture listed on UNESCO's intangible cultural heritage list. The government will present its formal nomination to the U.N. Educational, Scientific and Culture Organization by the end of March so a decision on the listing can be made as early as autumn 2013. UNESCO has put 20 Japanese cultural traditions ranging from the performing arts of kabuki and noh to festivals and traditional crafts on the list so far. (Japan Times)

Cat cafes in Japan let patrons rent a pet for the day

newjerseynewsroom.com — 2012-02-05 23:13:36

Starbucks may have staked out over 900 shops in Japan, but the major coffee franchise, whose retail locations are popular leisure spots, better watch its back. A new kind of hangout- one with whiskers - is growing in rapid popularity in Japan: the "neko" or cat cafe. Japanese patrons, especially in the Tokyo area, are paying to spend time at these cat cafes, where they can read a book, chat with friends, or yes, even drink coffee, in the presence of some feline companions. The business has been likened to renting a pet for a day. Customers can interact with a wide variety of cat breeds, read biographies on their favorite animas, and even share a meal with them. (newjerseynewsroom.com)

Cute company freshman shows boss-lady his ferocious alter ego

Tokyo Reporter — 2012-02-05 06:12:36

"The new guy who joined our company is really cute. He's got the looks of a model picked by magazine readers, is diligent at learning the job, and is just the type of guy that a studious gal like me wants to take under her wing - so to speak." Thus begins an alluring amorous adventure from the pages of the November issue of Renai Tengoku (Love Heaven), as introduced on the pages of Shukan Bunshun (Feb. 2). "A few days ago our staff went out drinking and I got really loaded," she continues. "He chivalrously offered to see me home in a taxi. I thought I'd let him take me as far as the door, but all of a sudden he pulled me inside and began kissing me." (Tokyo Reporter)

Kobayashi wins chicken wing crown

Japan Times — 2012-02-05 00:58:39

Multiple hot dog eating champion Takeru Kobayashi has won an annual chicken wing eating contest in Philadelphia, downing a record 337 wings in 30 minutes. At Wing Bowl XX, the 33-year-old Kobayashi on Friday smashed the previous record of 255 wings set last year by local champ Jonathan Squibb to win a $20,000 cash prize, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported on its website. The massive circuslike bash, hosted by a local radio station, was held in a sports arena and reportedly drew a crowd of about 20,000 eating enthusiasts who were entertained by local sports celebrities, scantily clad women and mud wrestling. (Japan Times)

Immigration cuts lengthy detention for foreigners

Japan Times — 2012-02-05 00:58:39

The number of foreign nationals detained by immigration officials for one year or more has dropped significantly since a more flexible approach was adopted in response to harsh criticism of long-term detentions, according to the Justice Ministry. As of August, 167 foreigners at immigration facilities in Ibaraki, Osaka and Nagasaki prefectures had been held for at least six months, the ministry said Friday. Many of them are believed to have overstayed their visas and were waiting to be deported or were seeking asylum in Japan. (Japan Times)

American's death in Osaka probed

Japan Times — 2012-02-05 00:58:39

An American resident in Osaka died Saturday after a passer-by found him lying unconscious on a street in the busy Minami area in Chuo Ward earlier in the day, police said. The Osaka Prefectural Police think the 23-year-old man may have fallen from a six-story building, and are investigating whether foul play was involved. A passer-by called for an ambulance after he saw the man lying on a street in the Higashi-Shinsaibashi district of Chuo Ward at around 7:15 a.m., police said. The man was identified from an ID card he was carrying, though police have not released his name. (Japan Times)

Japanese city takes on its gangsters

bendbulletin.com — 2012-02-03 23:45:19

Two years ago, the authorities in this gritty rust belt region declared war on the yakuza, Japan's entrenched organized crime syndicates. And that is exactly what they got. Since this city and other local governments beefed up regulations to take on the yakuza - making it a criminal offense for companies and individuals to do business with them - there has been a death threat against Kitakyushu's mayor and his family, hand grenades tossed at the homes of corporate executives and a construction company chairman gunned down in front of his wife. The police say the attacks, and many other lesser threats and intimidation tactics, are the doing of the Kudokai, a gang with more than 650 members that officials call one of the most dangerous of Japan's yakuza. The attacks have prompted the National Police Agency to propose giving law enforcement more powers to search and arrest gang members. (bendbulletin.com)

Cellphone taps resulted in 22 arrests last year

Japan Times — 2012-02-03 23:18:40

Police wiretapped mobile phones in 10 investigations last year and the eavesdropping led to the arrest of 22 people, a Justice Ministry report to the Diet showed Friday. The 10 investigations involved narcotics trafficking, underworld-conspired murder and gun possession, three of the four areas in which courts issue wiretapping warrants. All 22 arrests involved drug-trafficking cases, according to the report. The police obtained warrants for each instance of cellphone-tapping, allowing them to listen to conversations and read text messages. (Japan Times)

Woman sentenced to 4 1/2 years for breaking babies' legs

Japan Today — 2012-02-03 12:01:38

A Tochigi court on Wednesday sentenced a 30-year-old woman to 4 1/2 years in prison after she was found guilty of breaking the legs of four babies. The sentence was handed down at the Ashikaga branch of the Utsunomiya District Court. The court heard that Yuko Saotome approached mothers in children's goods stores and other public places, asking to hold their children and then surreptitiously broke their legs, NTV reported. According to police, the incidents took place between April and May 2010. The court said that Saotome could not be excused of her crimes on the grounds of temporary insanity. The judge went on to describe her actions as "despicable" and added that the crimes were motivated by jealousy at seeing happy mothers. (Japan Today)

Japanese archaeologists find pottery with ogre's face

People's Daily — 2012-02-03 11:48:13

A team of Japanese archaeologists has found a piece of pottery painted with the face of ogre which dates back to the 12th century in Nara Prefecture in western Japan. The earthenware was excavated from a well built in the early 12th century at Shindo Remains in Kashihara City, Nara Prefecture, where once Japan's capital was located, Japan's Nippon Hoso Kyokai (NHK) public broadcaster reported Friday. The excavation team said that the pottery is round shape with about 10 centimeters in diameter, noting that a face of ogre was drawn on its surface in ink. In particular, the team stressed, bold lines are clearly shown for his eyes, eyebrows and tusks from his mouth, making the face quite humorous and impressive. (People's Daily)

Manabu Miyazaki among those opposing anti-yakuza legislation

Tokyo Reporter — 2012-02-03 05:35:29

On October 5, the National Police Agency announced a revision to the Anti-Organized Crime Law to be submitted to the ordinary session of the Diet. The initiative follows anti-gang ordinances adopted by all prefectures and administrative divisions last October. In spite of attempting to reduce criminal activities, the moves are not without their critics, reports Nikkan Gendai (Jan. 28). At a January 24 meeting broadcast on video sharing site Niko Niko Douga (see link below), a panel of writers and journalists, including Makoto Sataka, Manabu Miyazaki, Soichiro Tahara, and Takashi Tsujii, voiced displeasure with the measures, which are intended to discourage ordinary citizens from fostering the activities of yakuza groups. Since its institution in October, the prefectural legislation has been called "overkill," with critics calling it a violation of basic human rights. (Tokyo Reporter)

500 vehicles stranded by snow in Aomori Pref.

Yomiuri — 2012-02-02 21:03:45

More than 500 vehicles were stranded on a section of National Highway Route 279 in Yokohama, Aomori Prefecture, on Wednesday night after a large truck and a bus skidded and became stuck on the road due to a blizzard, according to police. Early Thursday, Aomori Gov. Shingo Mimura asked the head of the Marine Self-Defense Force's Ominato District Headquarters to send a disaster relief team to the town. According to the Aomori prefectural government, 250 drivers caught in the gridlock abandoned their vehicles and spent the night at eight public facilities nearby, including an assembly hall and a primary school, opened as temporary shelters by the Yokohama town government and the neighboring city of Mutsu. (Yomiuri)

Retired police chief, 74, arrested after paying two 16-year-old girls for sex

Japan Times — 2012-02-02 21:03:45

A 74-year-old retired police chief has been arrested on suspicion of paying two 16-year-old girls for sex in Sapporo, a Hokkaido police spokesman said Thursday. Keiji Kato, who retired 15 years ago from the Hokkaido force, was arrested Wednesday for allegedly paying ¥6,000 each to the two high school girls to engage in sexual acts simultaneously in a Sapporo hotel Nov. 19 in violation of the law banning child prostitution, the spokesman said. Kato, who lives in Sapporo, also allegedly paid one of the two girls for sex at another hotel in the city on Dec. 3, the spokesman said. The police quoted Kato as saying, "I didn't know they were minors." (Japan Times)

Psych test for teen stabbing suspect

Japan Times — 2012-02-02 21:03:45

A 17-year-old boy arrested on suspicion of stabbing two girls in Saitama and Chiba prefectures will undergo a psychiatric examination after telling police he wanted to kill a person because killing animals wasn't satisfying, according to prosecutors. The Saitama District Public Prosecutor's Office wants to determine the boy's state of mind at the time of the stabbings and whether he is mentally competent. The tests will be conducted through May 7, the prosecutors said. The boy was arrested Dec. 5 and sent to prosecutors following the stabbing of a 15-year-old girl in Misato, Saitama Prefecture, on Nov. 18 and an 8-year-old girl in Matsudo, Chiba Prefecture, on Dec. 1. (Japan Times)

Top court nixes Monju suicide suit

Japan Times — 2012-02-02 21:03:45

The Supreme Court has rejected a damages suit filed by the family of an official who committed suicide in 1996 after being involved in a partial coverup of a coolant leak at the Monju prototype fast-breeder reactor in Fukui Prefecture, according to judicial sources. In its decision made Tuesday, the Supreme Court upheld rulings in lower courts that found the now-defunct Power Reactor and Nuclear Fuel Development Corp. could not predict the suicide of the 49-year-old deputy administration department chief, the sources said. (Japan Times)

Snow paralyzes northern Japan; 3 die in avalanche

AP — 2012-02-02 12:26:08

An avalanche has killed three bathers at a hot spring in northern Japan, where heavy snow also has paralyzed traffic and forced schools to close. The deadly avalanche hit Thursday in Akita. Officials say snowstorms have battered coastal cities along the Sea of Japan and large parts of northern Japan since late last year. Some areas have received more than twice as much snow as normal. The snow has played a role in 56 deaths, and more than 750 injuries, since November. Most of those killed fell from rooftops while shoveling snow. (AP)

Democratic Party of Japan's Yasuko Komiyama loses civil suit in lottery-ticket scam

Tokyo Reporter — 2012-02-02 02:26:36

On January 12, the Tokyo District Court ruled against Democratic Party of Japan diet member Yasuko Komiyama in a lottery-ticket fraud scheme masterminded by her brother, reports Shukan Asahi Geino (Feb. 2). The ruling requires the 46-year-old lawmaker and the other defendants, including her brother, Kenji Hashimoto, 41, her mother, and lottery-ticket sales firm New Lottery Service, to pay 15 million yen and accrued interest over a five-year period to the victim. In June 2010, Hashimoto, was arrested for allegedly defrauding the 45-year-old plaintiff, a resident of Tokyo, out of 4 million yen in a fictitious transfer of rights to lottery-ticket sales booths. Hashimoto is still on trial. (Tokyo Reporter)

The games that changed Japan

guardian.co.uk — 2012-02-01 22:13:11

The first arcades in Japan weren't video arcades, and they weren't even in game centres. In the decades following the second world war, gamers played electro-magnetic games in bowling alleys and on department store rooftops. Families would take shopping breaks, playing carnival-style shooting games or riding rinky-dink kiddy trains. Gradually, early analogue arcade games began popping up - driving games in which the road was on a rotating belt, and players had to steer a small car through obstacles. Companies like Namco and Sega started joining in, releasing magnet-powered cabinets that were the forerunners of the modern arcade game. In 1978, everything changed as Space Invaders enthralled the country - and the rest of the western world - spawning a slew of arcades and players dedicated solely to the new game. The game's release came just as Star Wars was hitting Japanese cinemas - and the timing could not have been better. (guardian.co.uk)

Privacy and Net cafes - a tale of two cities

Japan Times — 2012-02-01 22:08:45

Kazushi Takahashi, a 22-year-old student in Tokyo, likes the privacy provided by closed individual rooms in Internet cafes, where he can surf the Web, play online games and read manga. "I wouldn't be able to relax if people peek in a room I am in," he said. What Takahashi doesn't know is that since last April people like him in Osaka and a few other prefectures don't have the privacy he enjoys in Tokyo's Internet cafes. Privacy is out of reach for Osaka Internet cafe fans because operators had to make the rooms viewable from the outside, for example by changing door materials from wood to transparent acrylic or altering the doors so they can't be closed. (Japan Times)

Hamamatsu new 'gyoza' capital

Japan Times — 2012-02-01 22:06:56

Boasting dozens of restaurants and shops and the highest household consumption rate of "gyoza," Utsunomiya, the capital of Tochigi Prefecture, has long been regarded as the capital of the Chinese dumpling as well. News photo Pot stickers: "Gyoza" dumplings are arranged for a photo Wednesday at a restaurant in Minato Ward, Tokyo. YOSHIAKI MIURA But no longer. For the first time in 16 years, the city lost its No. 1 ranking in gyoza consumption, beaten out by Hamamatsu, Shizuoka Prefecture, according to a recent survey of household spending released Tuesday by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications. Last year, Utsunomiya households spent on average just ¥3,737 on the dumplings, down 40 percent from a record high ¥6,133 in 2010. Meanwhile, households in Hamamatsu spent ¥4,313, down 10 percent from ¥4,754 in 2010. (Japan Times)

Darvish's brother guilty of assault

Japan Times — 2012-02-01 21:57:18

The Osaka District Court on Wednesday sentenced the younger brother of new Texas Rangers pitcher Yu Darvish to a suspended one-year prison term for assaulting a female friend. Sho Darvish, 22, repeatedly slapped the woman in the face and tried to choke her Jan. 25 last year in Kawachinagano, Osaka Prefecture, the court said. Presiding Judge Hidetake Koga said the defendant assaulted the woman after becoming angry over her association with some of her friends. "The attack was persistent and malicious," he said. (Japan Times)

Japanese emperor to undergo heart test

mysinchew.com — 2012-02-01 12:03:05

Japan's ageing Emperor Akihito is to undergo another heart exam next week, a palace official said Wednesday, amid increasing worries about the monarch's health. The angiogram of his coronary arteries, scheduled for February 11, comes after Akihito's electrocardiogram showed a restricted blood flow to his heart. The 78-year-old emperor went through the same test a year ago at the University of Tokyo hospital, which found his arteries were narrowing, leading to his being placed on medication, according to the palace official. In November, Akihito was hospitalised for 19 days for mild pneumonia. (mysinchew.com)

Writer talks of 'underground reality' of Japan's foreigners in new book

Mainichi — 2012-02-01 11:59:50

The myth that Japan is a homogenous society lost its veracity long ago. With the growth of globalization, the sight of foreigners living and working in Japan is certainly no longer a rare occurrence. However, how much do we know about the real lives of Japan's foreigners? This is the question that Kota Ishii, a spirited non-fiction writer, raises in his new book, "Nippon ikoku kiko -- zainichi gaikokujin no kane, seiai, shi" (Journey through foreign Japan: The money, love, sex and death of foreigners in Japan). The book introduces a South Korean who has conquered the Japanese sex industry by undercutting prices; an Israeli man with an expired visa who pays a Japanese woman to marry him to obtain Japanese nationality; Chinese who flee from the country after obtaining citizenship, and many other examples that portray the reality of "underground" foreign communities in Japan. (Mainichi)

Hello Kitty's citizenship controversy: Is she British or Japanese?

Time — 2012-02-01 00:21:14

Hello Kitty is beloved all around the world, but nowhere is she more revered, celebrated, and protected than in Japan. In fact, she was named Tourism Ambassador to China and Hong Kong by Japan's tourism ministry in 2008. However, the Atlantic Wire reports, the publication of Hello Kitty's Guide to Japan in English and Japanese has been stirring up a bit of drama, bringing Kitty's nationality and essentially her entire history in question. Her official biography on the Sanrio website explains that she lives in London with her parents and twin sister, Mimmy. We are given her birth date, but it's unclear whether she was born in London or just moved there at some point in time. (Time)

Mother held in daughter's slaying

Japan Times — 2012-02-01 00:12:42

A 37-year-old woman has been arrested on suspicion of stabbing her 12-year-old daughter to death at their home in Higashiosaka, Osaka Prefecture, police said. The slaying occurred Monday after the police had warned a local child counseling center Friday that the mother may have been neglecting her three children. The woman, whose name is being withheld pending investigation of her mental status, claimed her daughter had "stabbed herself," the police said. (Japan Times)

Air Force sergeant pleads guilty in murder

UPI — 2012-01-30 23:36:30

A U.S. airman in Japan pleaded guilty Monday to plotting with the wife of a service member to kill her husband and then slitting the man's throat. U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Nicholas Cron, 26, of the 733rd Air Mobility Squadron at Kadena Air Base in Okinawa, pleaded guilty Monday to conspiracy to commit murder, premeditated murder and obstruction of justice in the 2011 death of Tech. Sgt. Curtis Eccleston, 30, Stars and Stripes reported. The plea came during the opening day of Cron's court-martial in the fatal stabbing, which occurred in an off-base apartment. (UPI)

Fukushima pets in no-go zone face harsh winter

Reuters — 2012-01-30 23:28:59

Dogs and cats that were abandoned in the Fukushima exclusion zone after last year's nuclear crisis have had to survive high radiation and a lack of food, and they are now struggling with the region's freezing winter weather. "If left alone, tens of them will die everyday. Unlike well-fed animals that can keep themselves warm with their own body fat, starving ones will just shrivel up and die," said Yasunori Hoso, who runs a shelter for about 350 dogs and cats rescued from the 20-km evacuation zone around the crippled nuclear plant. The government let animal welfare groups enter the evacuation zone temporarily in December to rescue surviving pets before the severe winter weather set in, but Hoso said there were still many more dogs and cats left in the area. (Reuters)

Japan population to shrink by one-third by 2060

AP — 2012-01-30 23:14:35

Japan's population of 128 million will shrink by one-third and seniors will account for 40 percent of people by 2060, placing a greater burden on a smaller working-age population to support the social security and tax systems. The grim estimate of how rapid aging will shrink Japan's population was released Monday by the Health and Welfare Ministry. In year 2060, Japan will have 87 million people. The number of people 65 or older will nearly double to 40 percent, while the national work force of people between ages 15 and 65 will shrink to about half of the total population, according to the estimate, made by the National Institute of Population and Social Security Research. (AP)

Tokyo cops seize uncensored 3D porn DVDs in Internet-sale crackdown

Tokyo Reporter — 2012-01-30 06:10:59

Tokyo Metropolitan Police officers on Saturday raided an apartment building in Nerima Ward being used for the sale of uncensored adult video DVDs, reports the Sankei Shimbun (Jan. 30). Officers from the TMD's peace preservation division took Yuji Takada, 40, and Koji Koike, 37, into custody for selling uncensored DVDs through three Web sites, including Ero Step and seized approximately 60,000 discs, 21 of which were 3D Blu-ray discs. The Mainichi Shimbun calls the confiscation of such Blu-ray discs to be a nationwide first. (Tokyo Reporter)

Shotgun swiped with car in Chiba

Japan Times — 2012-01-29 16:43:43

A car with a loaded shotgun and a box with about 40 shells was stolen early Sunday morning in Ichikawa, Chiba Prefecture, police said the same day. A 67-year-old man phoned police around 4:40 a.m. to report that both his car and the shotgun were missing. Police said the man, a registered hunter, put the shotgun and ammunition in the car at around 10 p.m. on Saturday in preparation for a hunting trip. He covered the gun with a cloth and locked the car before returning to his house. (Japan Times)

Kawauchi govt heading home / Village 1st to return among those forced out by Fukushima N-crisis

Yomiuri — 2012-01-29 02:04:30

The government of a village forced to relocate due to the Fukushima nuclear crisis will return to the village in April, it has been learned, a move it hopes also will encourage residents to come back. The village of Kawauchi in Fukushima Prefecture will be the first of the nine town and village governments that evacuated their offices to return to its original municipality. The village functions were moved to Koriyama City in the prefecture because a section of Kawauchi fell inside the government-designated no-entry zone around the crippled Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant, and the rest was named an emergency evacuation preparation area. (Yomiuri)

Quake efforts blamed for rise in snow mishaps

Yomiuri — 2012-01-29 02:00:30

This winter's heavier snowfall has seen more than 500 people across seven prefectures die or become injured in snow-related accidents, including cases in which they had been trying to remove snow, it has been learned. People are trying to remove snow themselves using shovels and other tools because of delays in municipal-led snow removal. The delays have been caused by a shortage of dump trucks--many of which are being used in areas affected by the Great East Japan Earthquake for reconstruction work--to transport snow. According to data compiled by the Akita, Aomori, Ishikawa, Nagano, Niigata, Toyama and Yamagata prefectural governments, the death toll from such snow-related accidents had reached 31 as of Wednesday, while 479 people had sustained injuries. In Nagaoka City, Niigata Prefecture, 10 workers fell at a construction site while clearing snow on Thursday, six of them sustaining injuries. (Yomiuri)

Talent agency's charity to provide billions for pandas

Japan Times — 2012-01-29 01:54:32

A charity established by a talent agency to support reconstruction in the northeast expects to shoulder several billion yen of the cost of leasing giant pandas from China for a zoo in Sendai. Singer Masahiko Kondo, 47, who represents the Marching J charity set up by Johnny & Associates Inc., said it will cover the expenses estimated for the initial five-year period. "We want to bring back smiles to as many children as possible," Kondo said. Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao has expressed a willingness to lease two giant pandas to the Sendai zoo in an effort to brighten the lives of children in Tohoku. (Japan Times)

1 killed, 21 injured in vehicle collision in SW Japan

CRIENGLISH.com — 2012-01-28 12:26:37

One person was killed and 21 others were injured in a collision involving a truck of Japan's Ground Self-Defense Force and a tourist bus Saturday morning in Kumamato Prefecture in southwestern Japan, local press reported. The accident occurred at around 8:35 a.m. local time when the truck and the bus carrying some 40 passengers collided inside a tunnel on the Kyushu Expressway near the city of Yatsushiro, the report said, adding that a 39-year-old tour conductor on the bus was killed and 21 passengers were injured, one of them seriously.. The accident happened when the GSDF truck changed lanes and hit the bus which was in the overtaking lane. (CRIENGLISH.com)

Eagles' star pitcher to wed celebrity

Japan Times — 2012-01-27 22:56:36

Rakuten Eagles pitcher Masahiro Tanaka is set to tie the knot with TV celebrity and singer Mai Satoda. The Sendai-based baseball team announced Thursday that 23-year-old Tanaka and Satoda, 27, plan to submit marriage papers in late March before the professional baseball season starts. "I would like to excel in my career so that my most important person can live her life in comfort and smiles," Tanaka, who won the 2011 Sawamura Award for outstanding pitching, said. (Japan Times)

Chinese man charged for Japan embassy attack in S Korea

BBC — 2012-01-27 12:11:38

Prosecutors in South Korea have charged a Chinese man with attempted arson for hurling Molotov cocktails at the Japanese embassy in Seoul. The 38-year-old from Guangzhou in southern China was identified only by his family name, Liu. He told officials that his grandmother was forced into sexual slavery by the Japanese army during World War II. He allegedly threw four petrol bombs that left burn marks on the embassy's outer wall earlier this month. According to South Korean media, he has been in police custody since 8 January. He reportedly entered South Korea on a tourist visa on 26 December 2011 via Japan. He also claimed to be responsible for an arson attack at the Yasukuni shrine last month. (BBC)

Chinese hooker club busted in Shibuya

Tokyo Reporter — 2012-01-27 08:49:28

Tokyo Metropolitan Police on Tuesday arrested the manager and three employees of a club in the Shibuya entertainment area for violating the Anti-Prostitution Law, reports the Sankei Shimbun (Jan. 27). Officers from the peace preservation division of the TMD took club manager Hiraki Sasaki, 63, into custody for offering customers sexual services from Chinese women inside a one-room apartment split into four sections by curtains. TV Asahi reports that Sasaki has denied the allegations. "This is not prostitution," said the suspect, who relied on a 29-year-old street tout to solicit customers. (Tokyo Reporter)

Nishi Azabu celebrity playpen target of Tokyo police gang probe

Tokyo Reporter — 2012-01-27 02:46:40

Coinciding with the enactment of anti-organized crime legislation last year, Tokyo Metropolitan Police have been focusing multiple investigations on a lavish club in upscale Nishi Azabu frequented by show biz personalities, reports Shukan Post (Feb. 3). The club is owned by the former president of a real estate company that went bankrupt with liabilities of 10 billion yen. He has been arrested for tax evasion, and the club seized. The Tokyo District Court ruled that the property is to be put up for auction. "The club as well as the owner's residence are inside the same　apartment building," a person involved in the investigation tells the tabloid. "There are nine apartments in the building, and eight are intended for auction. After the ruling, a friend of the owner filed a preliminary claim for ownership of the other unit. So it has become impossible to auction the whole building." (Tokyo Reporter)

Fukushima's animals abandoned and left to die

CNN — 2012-01-26 23:33:36

When you stand in the center of Japan's exclusion zone, there is absolute silence. The exclusion zone is the 20-kilometer (12-mile) radius around the crippled Fukushima nuclear plant, an area of high radiation contamination. On March 12, the day after the quake and tsunami hit, 78,000 people were evacuated out of this area, believing they would return within a few days. As such, thousands of people left with their dogs tied up in the backyard, cats in their houses and livestock penned in barns. Nearly a year later, animal carcasses litter the region. Cows and pigs starved to death, their bones still in pens. Dogs dropped dead with disease. A cat skull sits on a neighborhood road. This is perhaps an inevitable outcome to a nuclear emergency, but animal rights activists call it an outrage. (CNN)

Japanese man fakes own death with brother's body

telegraph.co.uk — 2012-01-26 23:33:36

A Japanese man managed to fake his own death by claiming his late brother's body was his own, according to police. Even while Tsukasa Oizumi's older sibling was alive, he used to use his driving licence to get around the fact that his own had been revoked for repeated traffic offences, according to Japan's Mainichi daily. When the brother fell ill and died aged 56 in 2008 Mr Oizumi decided to take over his identity completely. He told authorities that the corpse was his own, and even the doctor who dealt with the brother's demise did not suspect anything, according to the Asahi Shimbun newspaper. The body was cremated, as is normal in Japan. Mr Oizumi, now 58, went on to claim social security benefits in his brother's name for caring for their elderly mother at home, it added. (telegraph.co.uk)

Doctor, wife jailed for buying illegally harvested kidney

Japan Times — 2012-01-26 23:22:29

A Tokyo doctor was sentenced Thursday to three years in prison for purchasing an illegally harvested kidney, and his wife was jailed for 30 months over her involvement. The Tokyo District Court found Toshinobu Horiuchi, 56, and his 48-year-old wife, Noriko, guilty of purchasing the kidney in violation of the organ transplant law. The court said Horiuchi, facing kidney failure, in July 2010 paid ¥8 million to an intermediary in exchange for a kidney from a 21-year-old unemployed ma, whom the doctor technically adopted to ensure the transplant met the legal criteria of being among relatives. (Japan Times)

Hot springs stay turns into Cupid default swap

Tokyo Reporter — 2012-01-26 04:19:44

"My boyfriend and his close buddy Kazuo, and Kazuo's girlfriend and I made plans to take a trip to a hot springs. But when I got out of the bath, Kazuo made a grab for me. This may seem unbelievable, but it seems the two guys conspired right from the get-go to swap partners. I thought that was really a sordid thing to do." Thus begins the latest escapade in feminist erotic fantasies, excerpted from the women's magazine Ai no Taiken Special Deluxe, as introduced in Shukan Bunshun (Jan. 26). "But as he began groping me..." (Tokyo Reporter)