Tokyo Metropolitan Police have arrested a 63-year-old woman for allegedly strangling her daughter to death at their residence in Akishima City on Saturday, reports TBS News (tokyoreporter.com)

U.S. Vice President Mike Pence told Japanese Deputy Prime Minister Taro Aso this week that he favored a bilateral trade deal - which Tokyo opposes - to fix trade imbalances, sources with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters on Friday. (Japan Today)

The Supreme Court on Friday ordered a hotel operator to pay public broadcaster NHK a subscription fee of about 6.2 million yen, upholding lower court rulings. (Japan Today)

A public elementary school in the posh Ginza district in Tokyo has decided to adopt new uniforms designed by Italian high-end brand Armani, triggering protests from parents who say they are expensive, local education board said Thursday. (Japan Today)

Hyogo Prefectural Police have arrested the number-two boss of the Kobe Yamaguchi-gumi for traffic violations last month, an apprehension that appears to be related to the ignoring of a court order, reports the Sankei Shimbun (tokyoreporter.com)

Tokyo Metropolitan Police have arrested a 51-year-old executive at a real estate firm for allegedly forcing a man in debt to cut off one of his fingers, a crime the suspect says was done in jest, reports Sankei Sports (Feb. 8). (tokyoreporter.com)

Osaka Prefectural Police are seeking the whereabouts of the driver of a vehicle that slammed into the office of a criminal syndicate early Thursday, an incident that is believed to be connected to an ongoing dispute, reports the Sankei Shimbun (tokyoreporter.com)

Princess Mako, the eldest granddaughter of Emperor Akihito, met with her longtime calligraphy teacher at an exhibition in Tokyo on Friday in her first official duty since the Imperial Household Agency announced she will postpone her marriage until 2020. (Kyodo)

Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and US Vice President Mike Pence have reaffirmed the need to maximize pressure on North Korea, even as they welcomed inter-Korean dialogue ahead of the PyeongChang Olympics. (NHK)

Japanese internet and energy company SoftBank Group Corp reported Wednesday a more than 11-fold surge in profit for the fiscal third quarter thanks to strong sales and to improved results from U.S. carrier Sprint. (Japan Today)

Osaka Prefectural Police are searching for a man who stabbed a male commuter at a rail station in Taisho Ward on Wednesday, reports the Sankei Shimbun (tokyoreporter.com)

Japan's Imperial Household Agency has announced the postponement of the wedding of Princess Mako, daughter of Prince Akishino, and Kei Komuro. The event was scheduled for November. (NHK)

Tokyo stocks are continuing to plummet on Tuesday afternoon, following the overnight plunge in New York. (NHK)

Saitama Prefectural Police have launched an investigation following the discovery of three corpses wrapped in tarps at a residence in Fukaya City, reports NHK (tokyoreporter.com)

Police on Sunday made a seventh arrest in the bust of a large operation that trafficked so-called “dangerous drugs,” reports Fuji News Network (tokyoreporter.com)

Tokyo Metropolitan Police have busted a so-called "delivery health" business that is believed to have exploited a legal loophole in employing high school girls to provide sex services, reports Sankei Sports. (tokyoreporter.com)

Chiba Prefectural Police are hunting for a 46-year-old man after his son, 20, was found bludgeoned to death in their residence in Yotsukaido City early Sunday, reports TV Asahi (tokyoreporter.com)

Former American professional wrestler The Destroyer, who garnered tremendous popularity in Japan decades ago, received the esteemed Order of the Rising Sun at a ceremony in Buffalo on Saturday, reports Nippon News Network. (tokyoreporter.com)

Tokyo Metropolitan Police have released security camera footage showing an elderly woman being dragged for several dozen meters by a truck during a purse-snatching incident in Katsushika Ward on Thursday, reports TBS News (tokyoreporter.com)

Snow blanketed Tokyo and surrounding areas for the second time this winter on Friday, disrupting transport and forcing delays in entrance exams at educational institutions. (Japan Today)

The first Japan Sumo Association director to be dismissed before the end of his term, popular sumo elder and former yokozuna Takanohana, failed to regain his spot on the board of directors on Friday. (Japan Today)

Tokyo Metropolitan Police have busted a so-called “JK” (joshi kosei) school girl business in Maeda City that is believed to have masqueraded as a how-to service for smartphones while supplying underage female employees for sex, TBS News (tokyoreporter.com)

Around 1,200 people lined up on Thursday morning at Tokyo’s Ueno Zoo to see giant panda cub Xiang Xiang and mother Shin Shin, as a first-come, first-served system for viewing the animals kicked off. (Japan Times)

Australian rugby legend George Smith will no longer play for Suntory Sungoliath after the club said Thursday it had canceled the player's contract for his alleged assault of a taxi driver late last year. (Japan Today)

Japanese authorities have warned international gold smuggling rings are becoming more sophisticated after cracking a scheme to conceal gold bars in aircraft toilets. (scmp.com)