crime

Woman arrested for snipping hair off bus passenger seated in front of her

18 Comments
By Oona McGee, SoraNews24

A 51-year-old woman was arrested for suddenly cutting a female passenger’s hair on a local bus in Hokkaido’s capital city of Sapporo, saying she became annoyed when the hair touched her face.

The incident occurred on a bus in Nishi Ward on the night of Nov 12, with police saying the perpetrator used a pair of brow scissors to snip several dozen strands of hair off the victim’s head from behind.

The victim, a 22-year-old female office worker, was sitting on the front seat of the bus when she noticed some hair from her ponytail had been cut. After realizing what must’ve happened, the younger woman stopped the older woman from leaving the bus until police arrived.

According to police, the offender said, “I was mad at her for sitting alone in a two-person seat and fiddling with her smartphone.” After checking footage from the driver’s security camera, the woman could be seen cutting the hair of the woman in front of her, and so was immediately arrested for assault.

During questioning, the offender said she became annoyed by the woman’s hair, which hit her face and made her feel uncomfortable. However, at the time of the incident, there were only about five people on the bus, so the woman could have easily moved to another seat if the hair was bothering her.

While many were critical of the woman’s actions, a surprising number of commenters actually sided with the offender, saying:

“It’s bad manners to take up a two-person seat on your own while fiddling with your smartphone.”

“The female victim should have been a little more considerate.”

“I can totally relate to that feeling of hating other people’s hair on public transport.”

“I’ve had hair hit my face before and wanted to cut it.”

“You should mind your manners on public transport.”

It’s true that people should mind their manners on public transport, but it’s also true that you shouldn’t cut the hair of other passengers, no matter how annoyed they make you.

Because if we start taking matters into our own hands by physically assaulting those who don’t follow transport rules, we’ll all end up like this man on the train who hit a woman’s crossed legs with his newspaper.

Source: Niconico via Jin

Read more stories from SoraNews24.

-- Victim becomes attacker as suspected molesting leads to bus-bound slugfest【Video】

-- Love Live otaku takes up two seats on bus for himself, four for his anime plushie crushes

-- Serial foot licker apprehended in Kyoto after 30-minute lick-attack

© SoraNews24

©2024 GPlusMedia Inc.

18 Comments
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More like a 51 year old woman with entitlement issues! She could have moved, she could have said something, she could have done any number of things instead of cutting her hair!

She got what she deserved by being arrested!

9 ( +14 / -5 )

She wasn't taking up two seats, she was sitting in a seat that could sit two people (like almost every seat on Japanese buses) so unless the bus is packed or you're sitting in the priority seats, you're going to be sitting alone in a two person seat. There were only 5 people on the bus at the time? Who cares where she was sitting? So what now even if the bus is empty we have to sit as compact as possible as not to annoy people who aren't even there?

Oh, someone else's hair touched you for a second (possibly, the woman sounds like a nutter so she could be lying anyway) so you go ballistic? How privileged is your life that something that mundane and stupid makes you freak out? Imagine how good your life must be if merely being brushed by someone's hair for a second is so horrible that you feel you have the right to cut it off. So next time I'm elbow checked by some old bat trying to rush onto a train, am I allowed to cut their arm off?

Anyone who sympathizes with the old lady is ridiculous. I cannot even fathom what it's like to be that petty. Jesus.

13 ( +16 / -3 )

Not surprising all the people that agreed with this old creep. So many Japanese people walking around that are ticking time bombs for something like this, or worse.

Who wants to bet the old bat is single, unemployed and living with her mother.

-2 ( +5 / -7 )

damn my eyes... at first i read SNIFFING...

What a low life.

3 ( +4 / -1 )

damn my eyes... at first i read SNIFFING...

What a low life.

lol.....I read the same thing.

5 ( +5 / -0 )

I am going to say that the hair cutter has some deep seated mental issues. 

Sitting in a two person seat by oneself is not rude if the bus is not full.  Even if she had her bags in the other seat, if someone came along and needed the seat, the girl could have moved her stuff, or heaven forbid, the other rider asks to be seated, breaking the code of silence.  Also if she is playing on her phone, not talking out loud on it, but scrolling though what's the problem.

I suspect the 51 year old had a long day at work, or was heading to a long night of work and was just fed up and took it out on someone she thought wouldn't respond.  I bet this is not the first time this lady has done something to someone before.

6 ( +7 / -1 )

“I was mad at her for sitting alone in a two-person seat and fiddling with her smartphone.”

So if she sat alone in the back of the bus next to the window, would the old lady still be mad at her for sitting in a seat that could seat 4-5 people? How thoughtless could some people like this old lady be? The question also becomes "Why was this old lady carrying scissors on the bus?"

5 ( +5 / -0 )

I get being a bit peeved but you don't need to get snippy about it.

8 ( +8 / -0 )

Another nutter that can not control their emotions. And, another Japanese person who dies not give a poop about anybody else.

The Japanese ‘omotanashi’ is only present if there is money involved. Any other time it’s a nation of selfish strangers with no control over their emotions. Many times I’ve seen people just explode and lash out at someone for the slightest of reasons. I’ve also seen parents do it to their children many times. TIJ!

1 ( +4 / -3 )

It's like those a-holes that deliberately bump into people who are walking while looking at their smartphones.

Sure, their behavior is annoying. But, it doesn't justify assault. At all. Ever.

If I assaulted every annoying a-hole I saw on a bus, train, or just in general. I'd be in jail for 12,000 years.

1 ( +4 / -3 )

Nothing boring about Japan, and I guess I'll stop saying "I think I've seen everything." Man, another nut job. What's even weirder is that she got arrested for it.

-1 ( +1 / -2 )

damn my eyes... at first i read SNIFFING...

Can you get arrested for that, too?

4 ( +4 / -0 )

Japanese news reports note that the person who cut the hair was also drunk at the time.

2 ( +2 / -0 )

What in the world? Seriously? Cutting a young woman's hair over something so petty and trivial? For the love of mike! So what if she sat in a "two-person" seat? Most seats are like that. The single seats are priority seats for the elderly and the disabled. The snippy old bag should've been sitting there, not the young woman minding her own business. There were plenty of other seats she could have moved to if it bothered her so much.

And shame on the people defending her. Seriously, those excuses do not fly at all.

“It’s bad manners to take up a two-person seat on your own while fiddling with your smartphone.”

Only when the bus is packed and there's an elderly person who wants the other seat. When the bus is empty and there's plenty of options, it's fine. Cutting someone's hair for such a petty reason, that is bad manners.

“The female victim should have been a little more considerate.”

Considerate of what? That she'd end up sitting in front of an entitled old woman who goes ballistic over nothing? It's not like the young woman was doing it deliberately. If she'd been flicking her hair into the aggressor's face on purpose, that'd be a different story, but that's not the case.

“I can totally relate to that feeling of hating other people’s hair on public transport.”

And I'm sure there's plenty of people who hate you too for equally petty reasons. Or maybe less petty. Maybe they hate you because you have bad hygiene, or because you're a slef-entitled so-and-so who assaults other passengers for no reason.

And people wonder why I'm misanthropic.

6 ( +6 / -0 )

Japanese news reports note that the person who cut the hair was also drunk at the time.

Ah. The #1 criminal defense in Japan.

2 ( +2 / -0 )

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