Police mobilize 5,000 officers to track down last Aum fugitive

Cops were definitely out in force last night, every station had at least one posted.

Pardon me for stating the obvious, but maybe if they had done this 17 years ago he would already be on death row with the rest of them.

People are spoiled by tv shows where the bad guys are investigated, captured and prosecuted all under 60 minutes.

Some 5,000 officers fanned out across the Tokyo area to hand out fresh photos of the fugitive, Katsuya Takahashi, and monitor transportation hubs to keep him from escaping the capital.

Too late he's gone and gone into hiding again, unless he walks into a koban and says hi they wont find him.

Too late he's gone and gone into hiding, unless he walks into a Koban and says hi they wont find him.

Dogged Persistence does get good results sometimes. People on the run get very tired and finally give up. I wonder why first two decided to stay in Japan instead of moving to some foreign country earlier. Hmmm. I'm glad they didn't and now are ramping it up. But I agree, a little late.

How many are left pending arrest?

Pardon me for stating the obvious, but maybe if they had done this 17 years ago he would already be on death row with the rest of them.

Exactly.

Pardon me for stating the obvious, but maybe if they had done this 17 years ago he would already be on death row with the rest of them.

And you know for sure that they didn't?

And you know for sure that they didn't?

Actually, yes! They did have a campaign, of course, but nowhere near these numbers.

If Japan had a proper identification scheme, like an ID card, for the Japanese citizens and if construction companies would be keen to properly check identification, 17years and way more than 5000 policemen wouldn't have been necessary.

Some 5,000 officers fanned out across the Tokyo area to hand out fresh photos of the fugitive, Katsuya Takahashi, and monitor transportation hubs to keep him from escaping the capital.

Good Luck... Unless this guy turns himself in, they'll never find him. Matter of fact, he could probably walk right up to them and ask them for directions, and they would never the wiser, and he probably has...

I would bet he turns himself in in the next week....

5000 police for one criminal. Is this guy "superman" from the planet krypton or something? I guess the "statue of limitations" is about to run out. Perhaps, Atsumi and Sakai can save the day.

One good police detective could easily take the place of 5000 Japanese police officers.

So, approximately 300 officers for every year they didn't bother to take it seriously until now?

Anyway, in a case like this numbers don't mean too much if they are just standing at the stations, given the sheer number of pedestrians that pass them by, and they can't keep it up for long -- they better hope they nab him soon or this is the last we'll hear about the 5000 police mobilized.

onedragon: "One good police detective could easily take the place of 5000 Japanese police officers."

Exactly.

If this guy is smart, and seems to be by having eluded capture for all these years, he's probably well on his way to an area without the mass-surveillance systems. 5000 mall-security guards milling about smartly in Kanto are likely only to find the next-nearest decent ramen shop.

5000 police to track down a man ? so many police..in japan , were they sleeping?.

Believe me, mates, the worst policing job in history occurred between the Matsumoto sarin incident in '94 and the Tokyo subway attack in '95. They had a tip that it was Aum, but instead of investigating that, they jumped on a completely innocent fertiliser salesman whose own wife was a victim. Takahashi could probably walk up to a koban and ask directions to the nearest Aleph lodge and not be arrested.

the police might be on the move because he may strike again..well 5000 cops seems a bit excesasive unless they are on a time limit and know if and when he would attack again but thats all just thoughts coming out lol i have no idea really