SHIZUOKA (TR) – Shizuoka Prefectural Police have arrested a male officer from Gotemba City over the alleged molestation of a teenage boy inside a train, reports the Sankei Shimbun (June 29).
At around 9 p.m. on June 25, Hiroyuki Asakura, a 45-year-old officer in the Community Safety Division of the Shizuoka police, allegedly touched the boy in a manner deemed obscene while riding inside a carriage of the JR Tokaido Main Line.
The Numazu Police Station did not divulge if Asakura admits to the allegations or not. However, he told police during voluntary question that he “does not recall” the incident since he was drunk. He was sent to prosecutors on suspicion of indecent assault on Friday morning.
On the day of the incident, Asakura attended a seminar on the prevention of child abuse. He then went drinking with an acquaintance. The crime took place as he commuted home, according to police.
After the incident, a man alerted an employee at a railway station who in turn contacted police.
The division where the suspect is posted investigates stalking and domestic violence incidents, police said.
“I deeply apologize to the victim and the people of the prefecture,” said Yasuchi Takahashi, a section chief of the Shizuoka police. “We will deal [with the matter] strictly based on the results of the investigation.”