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Police said Wednesday they have arrested a 19-year-old youth who works at a demolition site for allegedly beating up a 19-year-old acquaintance on a street in Kameido, Tokyo, last month.
According to police, the suspect, who cannot be named because he is a minor, physically assaulted his acquaintance, demanding money that the victim owed him, NTV reported. He forced the victim, who is a university student, into his car and drove around for an hour, saying he would kill him and bury him somewhere.
Police said the victim did not owe his assailant any money.
© Japan Today
14 Comments
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Bob Sneider
its ridiculous that a 19 year old would be considered a minor here; i dont want this full grown, psychotic man to get a lighter sentence because they consider hims to still be a child
Kent Mcgraw
19 is not a minor, 18 is not a minor. For that matter 17 is not a minor and 16 is not a minor. You can not keep babies for ever, grow up and learn that they are physically and mentally capable. I am tired of 19 year old babies.
nath
Police said the victim did not owe his assailant any money
how completely bizarre.
cornbread1
Japan needs to understand that today's reality is very different from the past, and start trying minors as adults (based on severity of crime) as some countries have already done.
BigdaddyJ
A 19 year old is not a child. He's old enough to enlist in the armed forces. Matter of fact make him do just that. Enlist or prison.
Disillusioned
So, a couple of teenagers have a fight and it makes national news? Really?
bookowls
One of the things that baffles me after 15 years here is how a 19 year old is still considered a 'minor'!
valekt
In my home country (New Zealand), people 'come of age' when they're 21 - embodied by a huge birthday party, with a yard glass, etc. But legally, people are considered adults once they reach 18.
Japan is extremely stubborn about some things, and this is one of them. There should be emphasis that people can still come of age when they turn 20, but they need to be held legally responsible for their actions before that.
You could go deeper, and say that perhaps under-20s are considered minors here because they are attributed a very minor amount of responsibility (most living with their parents until they get married), but it doesn't go far beyond speculation. I'm no expert, but I've found that if you treat adolescents like responsible people, they are more likely to act the part. Treat them like kids who have no concept of action->consequence, and they're just as likely to act like that.
AustPaul
Must be a slow news day or we only have part of the story... Bigdaddyj...in the past maybe they would have sent him to the services but I think these days the last type of person the services want is a dropkick light him.
CraigHicks
The JDF are picky, they wouldn't take a mean violent nutcase like this guy. A good thing IMHO
Dennis Bauer
Physically they are adults, but mentally?
gogogo
If he is old enough to drive is is not a minor!
tmtmsnb
"One of the things that baffles me after 15 years here is how a 19 year old is still considered a 'minor'!"
Most young, spoilt trouble makers or candidates for trouble makers are children of politicians, law enforcers, hyoronka (critics), perhaps. From here draw your own conclusion.