NAGANO (TR) – A 45-year-old man convicted of attempted blackmail who fled custody in Tokyo earlier this week was apprehended in Nagano City on Saturday, authorities said, reports Fuji News Network (Oct. 3).
In a joint operation, Tokyo High Public Prosecutor’s Office and Tokyo Metropolitan Police apprehended Shin Takahashi at a hotel in the city at just before 2:00 p.m. Emiri Kidokoro, his 29-year-old female companion, was accused of harboring a fugitive.
Between 8:30 a.m. and 11:30 a.m. on October 1, Takahashi failed to return to the Tachikawa Detention House in Tachikawa City, Tokyo from a visit to a hospital in Kodaira City for treatment, the prosecutor’s office said previously.
At the time, Takahashi was in the company of his two guarantors. The office confirmed that Takahashi never made it to the hospital.
The office was able to contact one guarantor, a male owner of an izakaya restaurant. However, the second guarantor, Kidokoro, remained out of contact.
In August, the Tachikawa branch of the Tokyo District Court handed Takahashi an 18-month prison term for attempted blackmail. He is currently appealing that ruling.
