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With the number of crimes targeting school children increasing, the National Police Agency (NPA) has decided to deploy surveillance cameras along roads frequently used by children walking to and from school nationwide in an effort to quickly identify cases of suspicious individuals lurking around unsuspecting students.
According to the NPA, there were a total of 644 cases of children under the age of 13 who were targeted in crimes occurring along school routes in 2017. This year, in one high-profile case, a seven-year-old girl returning home from school by herself was kidnapped and murdered in Niigata City. The NPA said a majority of these crimes are committed by individuals, mostly men, approaching, following, or calling out to the children.
Given these facts, the NPA said it will install surveillance cameras nationwide to promptly investigate such incidents. Once information concerning suspicious behavior by anyone is gathered from residents, cameras would be installed in those areas after obtaining permission from property owners to record footage used for investigations.
Furthermore, law enforcement officials will begin sharing the information collected from these investigations with schools and regional areas to further strengthen measures to protect children.
© Japan Today
8 Comments
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Zack
else, they should install cameras in all trains and buses to prevent the ongoing sexual harassment (Chikan)
to high school girls
Disillusioned
The above statement is the real story, not the cameras!
The average person is already on camera upwards of 40 times a day. It has been like this for nearly twenty years.
Slickdrifter
To great comments and points brought up by Disillusioned and kurisipisu.
Good to see some tax dollars going to work to protect youngsters. Is it enough? Maybe not. However it is a good start. Soon my child will join his Japanese co-students everyday on the walk to school. I for one hope he will be safe. My boy is my world.
Disillusioned
Local volunteer residents often patrol school routes and pedestrian crossings in the mornings and afternoons. However, it is impossible to patrol every street in every neighborhood. It is also impossible to set up enough cameras to patrol every possible route of school children. It's unfortunate that one of these local volunteers was responsible for the kidnapping death of the young Vietnamese girl a year or so ago. The loon in this case was actually president of the local PTA. I'm sure the vast majority of people are morally sound, but it's difficult to tell who is gonna be the creep. Even quite a few Japanese police have been arrested for lewd acts like, groping, steeling underwear, child porn, etc. It would seem the only person you can trust is yourself. It's a very sad sign of the times we live in.
kurisupisu
Not once have I seen (in 30 years) a Japanese cop on the beat looking out for kids going to school.
I have seen plenty along main roads waiting to stop drivers for traffic infractions though.
Priorities?
lostrune2
How many policemen would see themselves on camera trying to take pictures of
sakurasuki
Before you realized cameras are everywhere.