Police in Osaka have arrested a 56-year-old unemployed man on suspicion of attempted murder after he attacked customers in a supermarket on Sunday night.
According to police, the incident occurred at around 6:30 p.m. at a Super Sanko supermarket in Hirano Ward, Kyodo News reported. Police said that after entering the store, Masafumi Iida hit a 85-year-old woman at the cash register in the head with a 25-cm-long metal tent peg.
The victim suffered severe injuries resulting in a depressed skull fracture.
After that, Iida attacked a 40-year-old male employee and two customers -- a 57-year-old man and a 52-year-old woman. The three sustained minor injuries, police said.
A store employee managed to subdue Iida and hold him down until police arrived. Police said Iida has denied the charge and quoted him as saying “I don’t know anything about the incident, and the charges are unfounded.”
© Japan Today
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kurisupisu
Mental illness seems on the rise or is it just the result of an uncaring society?
John
Mental ill ess and alcohol shouldn’t save the criminals from jail. Even if he has mental sickness, he should be locked up. It’s not safe to let mad people on the streets.
uaintseeme
The suspect is 56 years old so he's not exactly that old and most Japanese men that age seem relatively healthy. What's amazing to me is how unaware people were that this man was able to not only hurt a cashier as soon as he entered the store, but also managed to harm another male employee and two other customers. That's 4 people...attacked by a 56 year old man...with a tent peg. I hope everyone makes a speedy recovery.
finally rich
1-Google Tomohiro Kato (Akihabara mass stabber) or any other mass killer for that matter. Just your average guy you can share the same train seat minutes before.
2-This is a cultural trait in Japan. The japanese are very intelligent but extremely inattentive/unaware of the surroundings, you can stand beside your acquaintance and be totally sure he's seeing you as you can see his eyes but their reaction tells they had no clue you were there.
Thats probably what happened there, strange noises and even someone screaming but the others kept minding their business and walking by while staring at the floor very japanese style.
RINFO
"Masafumi Iida hit a 85-year-old woman at the cash register in the head with a 25-cm-long metal tent peg.
After that, Iida attacked a 40-year-old male employee and two customers -- a 57-year-old man and a 52-year-old woman.
Pop goes another coddled weasel.
With the economy going shabby, tempers increasing; In the future such kooks will encounter the wrong one.....
Rodney
Problem with Japanese law is you are not allowed to beat the guy up until police arrive otherwise you will be charged. Only “subdue”.
JerseyDevil
"Problem with Japanese law is you are not allowed to beat the guy up until police arrive otherwise you will be charged."
Well the majority elderly , may not be able to " Only “subdue” without the risk of the loss of an eye or maimed for the remainder of their eldery lives.Criminals have that advantage over "their citizens in Japan", While onlookers may never get involved unless...What a quagmire to live under!
jalan5
"Police said Iida has denied the charge and quoted him as saying “I don’t know anything about the incident, and the charges are unfounded.”
psychotic maniac liar!
Perhaps better if he said I was drunk and dont remember
falseflagsteve
Hirano not a particularly nice place to live, I would liken it to Amagasaki, a play I find to be incredibly ghastly and dull. I had to go there last week to attend to a business matter and couldn’t wait to leave and catch my train to Namba.
Will we ever know why this beastly man committed these vile attacks? Maybe a grudge or he just turned potty and out of his mind, temporary insanity as the boffins call it.
diagonalslip
my local 7/11 (the only one in town) has 12 'security' cameras, and i daresay that's par for the course, so.... I also daresay there's video on this. although, chances are, if police show him himself laying waste to the customers he'd just claim "that's not me!"....
pianissimo
Wrong. Article 128 of Japanese civil right law allows "defense with violence in order to disable [the attacker}".
Btang
"Article 128 of Japanese civil right law allows "defense with violence in order to disable [the attacker}".
Uh ....it depends on the area it happens in, It was a case many moons ago where a foreigner/gagin in Nagoya, beat the breaks off an unknown Japanese attacker, and still got arrested, handcuffed, and spent time at a koban station, until everything got finally sorted out!