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Hokkaido: Man exposes self to girl ‘due to stress from coronavirus’

HOKKAIDO (TR) – Hokkaido Prefectural Police have arrested a 43-year-old man for allegedly exposing himself in Sapporo City earlier this year, reports Sapporo Television Broadcasting (May 19).

On April 6, the man, who was not named, allegedly unzipped his pants to reveal his genital area to a girl inside a stairwell of an apartment building in Chuo Ward.

“With no job, I did it because I had accumulated stress from not being to go out due to the coronavirus outbreak,” the suspect was quoted by police in admitting to the allegations.

According to police, the suspect, a part-time employee living in Nishi Ward, gained access to the building by bypassing the locking system. After the incident, he fled the scene.

The arrest is the second for the suspect this month. Police first apprehended him for allegedly exposing himself inside a bookstore near JR Sapporo Station. Based on security camera footage, he was linked to the first case.

Since the suspect has a criminal record that includes indecent exposure cases, police tend to doubt that the novel coronavirus outbreak was the real reason behind last month’s case.