KANAGAWA (TR) – Kanagawa Prefectural Police have arrested a female school teacher for allegedly assaulting a security guard after being accused of shoplifting in Odawara City, reports Sankei Shimbun (Apr. 10).
At around noon on Sunday, the guard saw Satomi Kojima, a 27-year-old elementary school teacher in the town of Hakone, stealing four boxes of chocolate (valued at 870 yen) from a supermarket, located in the Kayama area, by concealing them inside a bag.
After shouting at Kojima, the guard, a 52-year-old woman, followed her for several hundred meters into a parking lot. After a confrontation ensued, Kojima allegedly stomped on the guard in the stomach in attempting to flee.
Kojima partially denies the charges. “I stole the chocolate, but I don’t remember stomping on the guard in the stomach.”
Hiroyuki Ishizuka, a representative from the Kanagawa Board of Education, described the incident as “very regrettable.” “I will endeavor to deal with this matter strictly after confirming the facts in the case,” the representative said.