choking: soft bread
	choking: konnayku jelly
	choking: mochi

If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!

Real Police Protect Real Old

Elderly people using cell phones at automatic teller machines in banks, convenience stores, and train stations are being questioned by police in Japan during a month-long nationwide anti-scam campaign.

The October effort is to prevent senior citizens from becoming victims of phone swindles. In one kind of scam, con artists call the elderly, convince them that a family member – usually a son –  is in trouble, and money is needed to settle the matter. Often the swindler convincingly poses as the desperate son.

Scammers had instructed seniors to withdraw cash at the bank and bring it to a specified location for the handover or wait at home for the money to be picked up.

When bank tellers started to become aware of the fraud, they began asking senior citizens about large withdrawals at the counter. Subsequently, the fraudsters started sending the elderly to ATMs, either to withdraw cash, or to electronically transfer funds from the ATM to the swindler’s acccount, all the while giving their targets instructions via cell phone. Victims were sometimes told to send the cash by postal packet or express delivery service.

The Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department is continually manning 1,000 ATMs. Officers are regularly patrolling 11,000 other ATM locations. The MPD has deployed 6,000 police officers for the operation.

But the Yomiuri Shimbun reports senior citizens have been conned during the anti-scam campaign. The paper says that of 94 scams reported as of mid-October, 16 incidents transpired at ATMs under police watch. The swindlers got away with almost 17 million yen, and one victim gave 2.98 million yen to the con artists.

The newspaper said the MPD is looking for effective ways for police and bank staff to communicate with pensioners to ensure sure they do not become victims of a scam. related: Evolving scams

Tokyo MPD: 42,984 officers. Population: 12,790,000. Officers per capita: 1 officer per 297 people.  source
New York City: 37,838 officers. Population: 8,274,527. Officers per capita:  1 : 218  source
London: 31,073 officers. Population: 7,560,000. Officers per capita: 1 : 243  source
Seoul: 24,736 officers. Population: 10,421,78. Officers per capita: 1 : 421  source

photos: (Yomiuri 7-11; Suginami.) (Two cops)

Shibuya Monkey Timeline

On August 20, 2008, a macaque monkey ran wild in Shibuya train station in Tokyo. Startled commuters watched as police failed to catch the monkey. TV crews were able to video the monkey chase through the station. The macaque escaped into the city. Video of the chase was broadcast on TV stations worldwide and posted on TV and newspaper websites. The story was reported worldwide.

Media On Alert

On September 9, 2008 a monkey was seen in Tokyo and local media converged on the area. Again, the Shibuya-monkey-spotting was reported extensively in Japan and worldwide. Some reports outside Japan erroneously stated the monkey had been loose for over a month.

On October 6, TBS-TV "Evening Five" news in Tokyo reported a monkey had been spotted in Takanawa, Tokyo and then the newscaster asked if it was the same monkey as from Shibuya station.

On October 9, the NHK-TV  "Newswatch 9"  weekday 9 p.m. TV news report also reported on the Takanawa monkey sightings and the caster asked the same question: is it the same monkey? The newscast also showed photos of the monkey taken August 20 in Shibuya and October 3 in Takanawa, to a primate specialist at Ueno Zoo in Tokyo. The scholar compared the attributes of the monkey noses, and concluded the images were of the same macaque.


Aping News!

Journalists in Tokyo were becoming concerned about the increasing number of monkey-sighting reports.

Then, on October 19, the monkeys came to city hall.

The Tokyo Metropolitan government office building complex in Shinjuku, Tokyo, was overrun by hordes of uniformed monkeys. Police immediately evacuated pedestrians and cordoned off the area. Stunned company employees watched as the monkeys were rounded up and taken to police headquarters for questioning.

"This is Japan. We love monkeys here. Why is this happening?", one bystander asked. Another person watching nearby said, "That Shibuya monkey has caused a lot of trouble. It should be caught."

Police suspect the Shibuya monkey is the leader of the insurgents.

It is not known where the monkeys obtained the uniforms.

Can You ID The Badge?

The number of badges and pins on Japan Prime Minister Taro Aso’s suit lapel varies daily. The purple pin with gold center indicates "membership" in the Japan government House of Representatives. In the photo above, Lets Japan is unable to confirm the memberships associated with the blue ribbon badge, the gold pin, and the red item that appears to be a feather.

photos: Senkyo (9/24); Sankei (10/8; 10/14); standing related Lawyer experience badges (J); CPA badge (J); badge manufacturer (J); Aso hip with comic book crowd.