TOKYO (TR) – Prosecutors have announced the non-prosecution of a 49-year-old man who upon his arrest admitted to slamming into multiple women he saw walking while using their smartphones, reports TV Asahi (Dec. 17).
At around 8:50 a.m. on June 25, Yoshiyuki Kiuchi, a company employee, allegedly rammed his body into a woman, 34, as she used her smartphone while walking along a platform for the Tokyo Metro Chiyoda Line at Nijubashimae Station.
The woman suffered injuries to her right elbow and chest that required three weeks to heal, the Marunouchi Police Station said previously.
Kiuchi, who was accused of inflicting injury upon his arrest in September, admitted to the allegations. “Two years ago, I slammed into another woman who was walking and using her smartphone,” Kiuchi was quoted. “She went tumbling down the stairs. Since it is dangerous, I slam into [persons] to warn them about once every three days.”
On Tuesday, prosecutors with the Tokyo District Public Prosecutor’s Office chose to not prosecute Kiuchi. No reason for the non-prosecution was given.
Kiuchi, a resident of Fujisawa City, Kanagawa Prefecture, surfaced as a person of interest in the case after an examination of security camera footage.
Police were aware of two other cases that took place at the same station earlier this year. On the morning of June 7, a woman in her 30s suffered at least one broken bone in a similar incident. Then, on the morning of September 11, a woman in her 50s experienced a wound to her head.
