Five pedestrians were injured, two seriously, when a car struck a stationary bus before plowing into a crowded sidewalk near Naruko Gorge, a popular autumn foliage destination in Osaki, Miyagi Prefecture, on November 1, with police arresting the 73-year-old driver at the scene on suspicion of negligent driving causing injury.
The family of a 16-year-old girl who died from severe malnutrition six months after being arrested and detained for 18 days over an assault allegation she denied has launched a lawsuit against Hyogo Prefecture and the Japanese government, with the first hearing held at Kobe District Court on October 21, as a separate case involving a 12-year-old girl has raised further questions about interrogation practices at the same police station.
A Japanese man believed to be the second-in-command of the criminal organization JP Dragon, which allegedly operated from the Philippines and repeatedly targeted Japanese nationals in organized fraud schemes, has been detained by Philippine authorities as part of an ongoing crackdown on the group.
A 79-year-old woman was arrested on suspicion of attempted murder in Kashihara, Nara Prefecture, on October 31 after allegedly driving approximately 2.2 kilometers with a 56-year-old man clinging to the hood of her car following a dispute in a condominium parking lot.
Japan's rapidly aging population is facing a growing crisis of elderly people dying alone at home, with grieving families sometimes unable to see their loved ones before burial and landlords increasingly forced to shoulder substantial cleanup and estate clearance costs when relatives abandon their inheritance.
Traditional Japanese crafts are finding an unexpected source of skilled workers in prisons across the country, where inmates are learning painstaking production techniques that build patience and concentration while helping preserve industries struggling with a shortage of craftspeople.