TOKYO (TR) – Tokyo Metropolitan Police arrested an officer for molesting a school girl inside the JR Saikyo Line on Monday, reports the Sankei Shimbun (Nov. 13).
At around 8:00 a.m., Genta Hebizuka, a 35-year-old head patrol officer in a public safety division, allegedly reached up the skirt of the girl, a high school student, to fondle her body as the train traveled between Musashi-Urawa and Akabane stations.
Upon the train’s arrival at JR Akabane Station, the girl alerted station personnel who apprehended the suspect and turned him over to police.
Hebizuka, who has been accused of indecent assault, generally admits to the allegations, police said.
Hiroki Tsutsui, a police councilor, said that the arrest was regrettable. “Based on the results of the investigation, we will deal with the matter strictly,” the councilor said.
During his apprehension, Hebizuka elbowed a male staff member at JR Akabane Station in the face. Police are now investigating whether to add charges of assault resulting in injury to the suspect.