SAITAMA (TR) – A pair of men broke into a pawnshop in Kumagaya City early on Friday. Police later arrested a 69-year-old man and are hunting for the other perpetrator
Video footage of the incident shows the manager of the shop fending off the perpetrators with a pipe, reports NHK (May 16).
A little after 2 a.m., the pair broke into the pawnshop, which doubles as a residence, smashed a display case with a crowbar and stole gift certificates.
When the manager, who was sleeping on the second floor, called out to them, a scuffle ensued. The perpetrators used crowbars to hit the manager in the face, legs and other parts of his body.
The manager suffered unspecified injuries.
The two men then fled the scene. However, police officers responding to a call later located Keiji Wakayama, 69, of no fixed address, near the scene. He was later arrested on suspicion of robbery and assault. He admitted to the charges during questioning, police said.
“I never thought I’d fall victim to something like this”
The scene of the crime is in a residential area about 500 meters north of JR Kumagaya Station.
In footage provided by TV Asahi, a vehicle is shown pulling up to the shop. One man then pulls back the store’s shutter. After smashing the glass door, he enters and starts scanning the area with a flashlight. After smashing the display case, he starts grabbing certificates.
The manager then appears behind the display case. With a pipe in hand, he chases the intruder outside. Once there, he smashes the windshield of the vehicle with the pipe as one of the perpetrators swings his crowbar wildly.
“I heard a loud noise, so I opened the door and found two men with crowbars behind the counter,” the manager of the store says. “I chased after them and they hit me with the crowbar, but I wasn’t going to let them get away, so I took the crowbar and hit the windshield of the car they were in. I sprayed insecticide on them, and the two left their car and ran away. I never thought I’d fall victim to something like this.”
The other man is still on the run. Police are currently seeking his whereabouts.
