News On Japan

Mother of 12-Year-Old Thai Girl Caught In Prostitution Gets Arrest Warrant

TOKYO - The Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department has obtained an arrest warrant for the mother of a 12-year-old Thai girl who was illegally employed at a massage parlor in Tokyo's Bunkyo Ward, on suspicion of violating the Child Welfare Act.

The case involves the arrest of Masayuki Hosono (51), a massage parlor owner in Tokyo's Bunkyo Ward, for illegally employing a 12-year-old Thai girl. The girl arrived in Japan in June of this year with her mother, who is in her 20s. After introducing her to the parlor, she returned to Japan approximately two weeks later. The girl is believed to have provided sexual services in private massage parlors, serving 61 clients over the course of a month.

Subsequent interviews with investigators revealed that the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department has obtained an arrest warrant for the mother on suspicion of violating the Child Welfare Act, alleging that she introduced the girl to the parlor knowing that she would be forced to engage in lewd acts.

According to a senior Thai police official, the mother is currently being held by local authorities in Taiwan in connection with a separate prostitution-related case. Investigators stressed the need to quickly resolve the case in order to protect the girl.

Additionally, senior Thai police officials have been visiting Japan since yesterday (11th). They reportedly visited the National Police Agency yesterday to confirm the girl's current situation and mutual cooperation in the investigation. Full-scale discussions also began at the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department this morning (12th), and it is believed that they are discussing the status of the investigation into this case and the future transfer of the mother to custody. The Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department considers this to be a case of human trafficking, and is investigating the possibility that a broker may be involved.

Source: TBS

News On Japan
POPULAR NEWS

Large Typhoon No. 25 was moving northwest over waters south of Japan at 3 p.m. on September 19 and is forecast to strengthen as it approaches Kanto and the Izu Islands from September 20 through September 21, bringing the risk of torrential rain, violent winds and further damage in areas still recovering from last year's typhoon.

A black bear has been spotted near one of the most popular hiking trails on Mount Takao in western Tokyo, prompting authorities to urge visitors to take precautions ahead of the five-day Silver Week holiday and the approaching autumn foliage season.

Starbucks is considering selling a majority stake in its Japanese business, potentially valued at as much as $3 billion, or about 470 billion yen, as the U.S. coffee chain seeks to concentrate management resources on its struggling North American operations.

Japan's Halloween Jumbo Lottery went on sale nationwide on September 16, offering a combined top payout of 400 million yen for the first prize and its adjacent-number prizes.

A new top-tier "Supreme Class" offering fully private compartments above the level of Green Car service will debut on the Tokaido and Sanyo Shinkansen on October 1, with passengers able to experience the new seating at a demonstration booth at Shin-Osaka Station.

MEDIA CHANNELS
         

MORE Society NEWS

Anonymous and fluid criminal groups known in Japan as "tokuryu" are adopting increasingly elaborate tactics, including a scheme in which elderly victims are persuaded to hide cash inside refrigerators before thieves enter their homes, as authorities struggle to combat networks whose members often have no direct contact with one another.

A luxury mansion in Bangkok described as resembling a palace was being used as a base for a specialized fraud operation targeting Japanese people, with Thai authorities detaining 14 people, including four Japanese men.

Copper roofing has been stripped from Shinano-no-miya Shrine in Oshika Village, Nagano Prefecture, leaving the wooden structure exposed in the latest of a series of similar thefts reported at shrines across the prefecture.

A popular Tokyo nightclub hostess and influencer known as Yamatorino, who says she generated more than 200 million yen in sales during a single month, has been arrested on suspicion of possessing cocaine with her boyfriend at their home in Roppongi.

A second-year high school student was arrested at the scene after allegedly releasing tear gas spray inside a classroom at Osaka University of Commerce Sakai High School on September 16, leaving 24 students complaining of coughing, throat pain and other symptoms.

Police have arrested a 26-year-old man suspected of acting as a top-level planner in an anonymous, fluid criminal group known as a "Tokuryu," with investigators believing he was involved in a series of theft-related crimes in Kyoto and other areas between December 2025 and March 2026.

A 37-year-old man was arrested at Chubu Centrair International Airport after allegedly injuring a police officer who warned him about walking two toy poodles without leashes inside the airport complex.

The number of people aged 100 or older in Japan has exceeded 100,000 for the first time, reaching a record 107,677 as of September 1, according to the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare.