For 2014, Osaka topped the rankings for the 15th straight year as far as incidents falling within the seven categories of street crime, which includes purse snatchings, muggings, car thefts and violations committed inside vehicles and trains. The number of incidents rose by 3,268 over the year before to total 73,537.
Likewise, the number of cases of indecent assault last year were the highest in Japan for the fifth consecutive year, totaling 1,189, an increase of 160 over the year before. Of the total, 254 involved pupils in middle school or younger.
“The situation is still severe,” said Masamitsu Miura, the director-general of the Osaka police, according to Tokyo Sports (Jan. 12). “It is important to quickly arrest habitual and serial criminals.”
In July of last year, Osaka police admitted to deliberately not reporting roughly 81,000 criminal cases over five years through 2012. The cover-up of the cases, which included street crime, was an effort to cause the metropolis to fall below Tokyo in the national rankings.
