SHIKOKU - A man suspected of stealing 24 medaka fish from an unmanned roadside shop attempted to destroy evidence by throwing the fish and their containers from his car window while fleeing police in an incident on September 25.
Security camera footage captured the man arriving at the unmanned sales stand shortly before 7 a.m. on September 25. After carefully examining the medaka on display, he picked up two containers with both hands and walked away without paying, ignoring the payment box directly in front of him.
The man then returned to the stand, examined more fish and took another two containers. He repeated the process a third time, stealing a total of six containers holding 24 medaka in approximately three minutes.
The shop owner estimated the losses at 11,500 yen.
"I thought this location would be relatively safe because there are plenty of people passing by and the shop is clearly visible," the owner said.
After discovering the theft on security camera footage, the owner contacted police, who visited the scene to investigate.
However, the incident took an unexpected turn shortly after 5 p.m., when the same man returned to the unmanned stand, just after police had completed their investigation and left.
The owner, who happened to be nearby, recognized the man and photographed the license plate of his vehicle before contacting police again.
"I told him the police were coming and asked him not to leave, but he said he was busy and drove away," the owner said.
Realizing that police had been contacted while he was examining the fish, the man got into his vehicle, which was parked directly in front of the shop, and fled toward Shimanto City.
Police subsequently pursued the vehicle, but the suspect reportedly took extraordinary measures to dispose of the stolen goods.
According to the owner, the man began throwing medaka out of his car window in an apparent attempt to destroy evidence. He also discarded empty containers toward a mountainous area along his escape route.
"It seems he was throwing the medaka out of the window to get rid of the evidence. He also threw empty containers toward the mountains. The police apparently had a difficult time dealing with everything in the rain," the owner said.
Police eventually apprehended the man and are investigating him on suspicion of theft.
Source: FNN
