In addition to being tasty, casual, and convenient, low prices are a big part of the appeal of Japan’s conveyor belt sushi restaurants. At the most popular major chains, for example, you can usually get a two-piece plate of mainstays like tuna or salmon for 200 yen or less.
A 43-year-old man’s meal at a branch of conveyor belt sushi chain Hama Sushi in Saitama Prefecture, though, is going to end up costing him a lot more than that, but he really has no one to blame but himself.
The man went into the Hama Sushi branch in the town of Tsurugashima on May 27, then filmed himself taking a plate of tuna sushi from the conveyor belt, pulling a dish soap container out of his bag, and squirting liquid from the bottle onto the fish. He then posted the video online, later telling investigators that he did it because he wanted “to get a lot of views on social media.”
He was arrested on charges of forced obstruction of business, and Saitama’s Kawagoe summary court has now handed down its verdict, ordering the man to pay a fine of 500,000 yen.
Though equivalent to the cost of 3,788.88 plates of Hama Sushi’s tuna sushi, 500,000 yen isn’t exactly a your-life-is-ruined sum, and many online commenters have expressed anger that the penalty wasn’t more severe. One factor in the decision may have been that the man squirted the liquid (which he later claimed was water that he’d put inside a dish soap bottle) onto a plate of sushi that he seemed to have ordered for himself, since it automatically came to a stop on the conveyor next to his table and he took the plate off the belt before applying the liquid.
Though the video cut off before showing what happened to the sushi, it’s unlikely that any other customer would have consumed the foreign substance, which may have gotten him some clemency. Nevertheless, after becoming aware of the video, Hama Sushi, as a precaution, had to disinfect the possibly affected area within the restaurant, and employees also had to spend extra time responding to customer complaints and inquiries about the incident, leading to the ruling that the man was guilty of the forced obstruction of business charge.
Even within a culture that’s passionate about food, Japan is particularly fond of conveyor belt sushi restaurants, with a wide swath of the population regularly eating at them. At the same time, both restaurant customers and operators know that the system is highly dependent on trust and considerate, hygienic conduct, and so while the fine could have been bigger, hopefully the swiftness with which the punishment was handed out will discourage others from similar disgusting acts.
Source: Yomiuri Shimbun, Jin, Saitama Shimbun
Read more stories from SoraNews24.
-- Video of man spraying liquid on conveyor belt sushi leads to arrest in Japan
-- Is it the end of Japan’s conveyor belt sushi as we know it?
-- Can’t go to conveyor belt sushi? Major Japanese chain will bring the conveyor belt to you!
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- https://soranews24.com/2026/06/27/japanese-mans-gross-conveyor-belt-sushi-social-media-prank-video-gets-him-a-500000-yen-fine/
12 Comments
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IMadeAnAccountJustForThis
... A 43 year old man doing stupid pranks for views ...
Jackass never dies it seems.
sakurasuki
It's an expensive short videos.
Legrande
If his video and channel went viral that fine won't mean much to him
Politik Kills
Low life pos trying to appeal to other low life pos’s for ’likes’.
Remember when the internet was about researching the just out of reach answer to some question? It’s been hijacked by the billionaire elites and at the complete opposite end of the scale, desperate low life bottom dwellers.
ebisen
Everybody blames the idiot (hey - easy target) but nobody goes after the holding companies of Toktok and Youpipe enabling this. In the world of AI, they should employ some models verifying that the actions of the posers do not harm anyone else.
OssanAmerica
The fine amount ifs nothing.
Hama Sushi needs ti sue him in civil court for some whopping figure that will ensure he will be working to pay them off for the rest of his worthless life.
masterblaster
Remember when the internet was about researching the just out of reach answer to some question?
Actually, the internet has never been that. Since day one, there's been filth on the internet.
Maybe you could argue in the beginning of the beginning of the beginning, but it wasn't really the internet then. It as just universities communicating with one another. But that wasn't really the internet.
WoodyLee
EXCELLENT, how about some time in the joint too !?
InspectorGadget
Simple solution.
1) Any revenue from the video is confiscated.
2) A penalty is imposed on top of the confiscation of revenue
3) Any copies of the video the defendant has copies of are destroyed.
3) The defendant is given a suspended sentence for a period of time, during which they are prohibited from gaining any benefit from the footage.
HopeSpringsEternal
Wouldn't surprise me if this 'prankster' turns this into a money making youtube 'view/advertising' $windfall, as he deducts the 500K Yen fine for tax reasons
Sanjinosebleed
He should be jailed and fined!
oldman_13
And yet Japanese netizens are quick to blame every misbehavior on foreigners.