Less than two weeks after the Akiba killing spree, one of the top stories on Mainichi today is about another knife-wielding man who was roaming the streets of Akiba. The article doesn't make it clear why they were questioning the guy in the first place. Was he waving it around? Probably not—it just says "they found a knife in his rucksack." Is it illegal to be carrying a knife around in your backpack? Dunno. Anyway, the cops confiscated the weapon, suffering a few surface wounds in the process. I just thought it was interesting that this was the most popular news story of the day when there really doesn't seem to be much of a story there. Is it insinuating that otakus with knives are dangerous? Again, I just don't know.
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June 26, 2008
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Lisa Katayama's personal blog.
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Hello! When Obata Takeshi was arrested for possessing a knife a couple of years ago, I read that it was because Japan has very strict laws about knives. I haven't read the original article so I don't know if the guy was doing anything odd to raise suspicion. Weird. O_o
Obata arrest story here: http://www.manganews.net/forums/showthread.php?p=16014
ps thank you for your blog - I enjoy reading it!
Posted by: gaminette | June 26, 2008 at 05:29 PM
Random bag searches by police are becoming more and more common. I see it happen frequently in Shinjuku, mostly on the West side, near the camera stores.
Recently I was in a shop in Ueno, looking to replace a Swiss Army knife and the shopkeeper told me that they did not sell knives to foreigners. When I asked why, the man said "Because of the incident in Akihabara."
"But that was a Japanese person." I replied, only to be met with a blank stare.
Posted by: mmdc | October 24, 2008 at 09:13 PM