Akihabara ‘girl’s bar’ busted for employing 15-year-old student

TOKYO (TR) – Officers from the peace preservation division of the Tokyo Metropolitan Police on Wednesday busted a specialty hostess club in the Akihabara district for employing underage girls, reports Sankei Sports (July 5).

Koichiro Fukayama, 44, the manager of “girl’s bar” AKB162, was taken into custody for violating the Law Regulating Adult Entertainment Businesses regarding the employment of minors. Three girls, one aged 15 and two aged 16, were also taken into protective custody.

A girl’s bar is a variation of a hostess club in which the club is legally registered as an after-hours, eating-and-drinking establishment so as to avoid more strict regulations under the adult-entertainment law. A bar or cafe appearance is provided while near night-club services are rendered. Employing a person under the age of 18 is illegal under these conditions.

AKB162 is specifically known as a joshi kokosei (high school girl) cafe, or JK cafe. The club collects three million yen in monthly revenue while employing 20 high school girls attired in their uniforms. Chatting and playing games are popular attractions, and outside dates with the staff members are possible at a rate of 30,000 yen per day.

At approximately 8:00 p.m. on July 4, the three girls were seen welcoming a 32-year-old office worker to the club.

“After I saw 1996 as the date of birth on the health insurance card (of one of the girls) I was shocked,” the suspect is quoted by investigators in admitting to the allegations.

Sankei Sports says that the bust was a part of a nationwide effort to crack down on such clubs. Over a two-day period officers raided 93 establishments and made 62 arrests.

店員全て女子高生、無許可で客接待・・・経営者逮捕

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