A male company employee has been arrested for allegedly groping a woman on the JR Saikyo Line in Tokyo, police said Tuesday. Another man, who is also accused of groping the victim, managed to flee the station by jumping onto the railway tracks. (Japan Today)

As Japan gears up to introduce a departure tax next year in the run-up to the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics, the Diet on Tuesday enacted legislation to limit the use of revenue from the levy to boosting tourism. (Japan Today)

A former reporter for Japanese public broadcaster NHK charged with raping three women pleaded not guilty Tuesday at the first hearing of his trial. (Japan Today)

Japanese researchers have found more than 16 million tons of rare earth deposits, equivalent to a few hundred years of global consumption, under the seabed near Minami-Torishima, about 1,900km southeast of Tokyo. (Nikkei)

Niigata Prefectural Police have arrested a 43-year-old man on suspicion of starting a fire that killed an elderly female acquaintance in Joetsu City earlier this year, reports the Sankei Shimbun. (tokyoreporter.com)

Japan's catch of Pacific flying squid fell to a new all-time low in 2017, sending wholesale prices of the seafood to profit-squeezing highs for companies that process it into popular foods. (Nikkei)

Tokyo Disneyland's new parade celebrating the theme park's 35th anniversary was unveiled to the media on Tuesday, with Mickey Mouse and other Disney characters dancing on gigantic floats. (Japan Times)

Kanagawa Prefectural Police have arrested an official at a night school for paying a teenage boy to engage in sex earlier this year, reports Kyodo News. (tokyoreporter.com)

A military parachute was found on a tennis court at a junior high school in Tokyo's Hamura City on Tuesday. (NHK)

Unused foreign bills and coins brought home by Japanese travelers as well as leftover yen nestling in the pockets of departing foreign visitors are creating business opportunities at the nation’s airports. (Japan Times)

Isao Takahata, who co-founded Studio Ghibli and directed the award-winning animation "Grave of the Fireflies," has died of lung cancer at a Tokyo hospital, people close to him said Friday. He was 82. (Kyodo)

Tokyo Metropolitan Police have arrested two persons, including a female Filipino national, for engaging in a fake marriage in Machida City, reports TBS News (tokyoreporter.com)

The Japanese yen is the sweetheart of global speculators. Speculators loath uncertainty but thrive on calculated risk, and the yen offers unparalleled favorable odds for fast-paced global money managers. (Japan Times)

The latest artificial intelligence technologies and services are on display at an exhibition in Tokyo. (NHK)

An Australian woman who was raped by a U.S. military serviceman more than a decade ago renewed on Thursday her request to Japan’s government to amend the Japan-U.S. Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA), which critics claim allows both countries to evade responsibility for misconduct linked to U.S. bases. (Japan Times)

Japan is moving toward legalizing initial coin offerings, even as countries such as China and the U.S. restrict the fundraising method because of the risks it presents for investors. (Japan Times)

Officials of the operator of the crippled Fukushima No.1 nuclear power plant apologized Thursday to the family of a 102-year-old man who killed himself in the face of an evacuation order amid the 2011 nuclear crisis. (Japan Times)

Investigative sources say about 250 kilograms of illegal stimulant drugs were found in a cargo ship that arrived at the Port of Tokyo from Hong Kong in January. (NHK)

Chiba Prefectural Police have launched a murder investigation after an 88-year-old woman was strangled to death in Katsuura City, reports the Sankei Shimbun (tokyoreporter.com)

An art installation featuring a telephone booth filled with water and dozens of goldfish will be removed from in front of a coffee shop in Nara Prefecture after an accusation of plagiarism, the local body managing the property said Wednesday. (Japan Times)

Japan's Ground Self-Defense Force has held a ceremony to mark the creation of a new command that has control over all GSDF units nationwide. (NHK)

Aichi Prefectural Police have arrested a staff member at the Transportation Bureau of Nagoya over the alleged possession of child pornography, reports the Sankei Shimbun (tokyoreporter.com)

Oita Prefectural Police have cited a driver of a vehicle for the Google Street View service for traveling in a restricted area of Oita City, reports the Mainichi Shimbun (tokyoreporter.com)

A member of the Japanese all-girl idol group AKB48 suffered a head injury on Sunday after tripping off the stage during a concert in Saitama near Tokyo, its management agency said. (Japan Today)

Nobuaki Kurumatani on Monday took office as the first chairman and CEO of Toshiba Corp to be appointed from outside the company in over 50 years. (Japan Today)