TOKYO (TR) – A 41-year-old former elementary school teacher currently on trial for molesting a student has been re-arrested on for attempting to commit an indecent act on another young girl in Machida City, reports TBS News (May 21).
On Thursday, Tokyo Metropolitan Police served Ryuta Hirabayashi with a fresh arrest warrant for attempted sexual assault. According to investigative sources, the suspect attempted to sexually assault an upper-grade female student in May 2023 at the Machida elementary school where he was employed at the time.
Police did not reveal whether Hirabayashi admits to the latest allegations.
The Machida Police Station alleges that Hirabayashi instructed the young girl to strip down to her underwear under the pretext of conducting a “health check.” The incident did not escalate further because the student actively refused his advances.
The suspect is already facing legal repercussions for his past conduct. The suspect was arrested by Tokyo police in November 2025 on suspicion of indecent assault. In that case, he molested a different female student at a different elementary school in Machida in September 2018.
In February, Hirabayashi was handed a two-year prison term. He is currently in the process of appealing that conviction.
