Mar 02 (NHK) - Japanese police have arrested a man for fatally wounding a wild deer at a park in Nara City, western Japan.
Herds of wild deer roaming Nara Park are protected after being designated a natural treasure by the government more than 60 years ago.
The arrested man is 23-year-old Yoshii Hayato from Mie Prefecture.
Police say he struck the deer with an axe on February 7. The animal died of resulting injuries.
Before dawn that day, police got a report about a wounded deer that was unable to move. They checked surveillance camera footage and identified Yoshii as the suspect.
Yoshii told investigators he was playing with the deer when it rammed his car. He said he got angry and decided to kill it, hitting it with the axe as hard as he could.
Ashimura Yoshitaka, the secretary general of the Nara Deer Preservation Foundation, called the incident unbelievable. He said Nara deer have been cherished since ancient times as messengers of the gods, and are not afraid of humans. He added that he hopes no such thing ever happens again.
Source: MBS NEWS
