SAITAMA (TR) – Saitama Prefectural Police have arrested a fireman stationed in Tokyo over the alleged molestation of a woman in Saitama City last year, reports the Sankei Shimbun (May 26).
Early on October 31, Atsushi Fujii, a 35-year-old assistant with the Tokyo Fire and Disaster Management Agency, allegedly touched the body of the woman, aged her 20s, as she commuted home on a road in Chuo Ward.
He then allegedly grabbed her wallet containing 9,000 yen in cash, the Urawa-Nishi Police Station said.
Upon his arrest on suspicion of indecent assault and theft on Tuesday, Fujii denied the allegations. “I called out to her, but I did not touch her or take her wallet,” the suspect was quoted by the Urawa-Nishi Police Station.
Fujii lives in Chuo Ward. At the agency, he is stationed in a rescue division.
“The arrest of a staff member is truly regrettable,” said Hiroki Sato, a representative from the agency’s public relations department. “After confirming the facts, we will deal [with the mater] strictly.”
