Japan's latest tourism headache is American arrested for damaging Tokyo shrine

He's 65?!?!

Uber dumb.

I hope they prosecute him properly and accordingly for his selfishness and idiocy.

The amount of tourists here is wild now, and the obvious spots are absolutely rammed. I was in Shibuya last weekend and the scramble had foreign tour groups crossing the road filming themselves and loudly shouting 'Wooooo!!!!' as they went across - also American. Cringe.

How I miss the quiet COVID years of no tourists in Tokyo. That was bliss.

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Could have sworn I read this story here yesterday.

The case follows two incidents this year of graffiti scrawled on a pillar at Tokyo's Yasukuni Shrine that is affiliated with Japan's wartime past. Police obtained arrest warrants for three Chinese nationals as suspects, according to the Asahi newspaper.

Despite this recent elderly American idiot's best efforts, Chinese tourists are still leading the way for title of worst manners. Pick up your game if you want the title, Americans!

Seriously, it's not rocket science to show a bit of respect and common-sense wherever you travel.

When I go to Mizumoto Koen for my walk and when I see chinese tour bus I choose the very hardest trail .

I know the down votes will flow in but really don’t care, tourism is ruining Japan.

Despite this recent elderly American idiot's best efforts, Chinese tourists are still leading the way for title of worst manners.

Johnny Somali is not Chinese. Neither is Logan Paul. Or the break-dancers on the train. For their worst I doubt if any Chinese have tried to burn apartment blocks, like what an American kid did here three weeks ago.

If the news made as big a deal about the Japanese youth spraypaint tagging the temples and shrines in my Tokyo neighbourhood!

Is this more heinous than the Japanese nursery school teacher just sentenced for molesting numerous students?

The worst thing about this is it gives all ‘foreigners’ a bad name when the vast majority wouldn’t dream of doing anything like this.

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I so want to kick this guys as hard as possible in the n#ts!!!

What a complete stupid thing to do!

The guy is 65 and behave like this?

Definitely he should get a hefty penalty for damaging such important property.

For their worst I doubt if any Chinese have tried to burn apartment blocks, like what an American kid did here three weeks ago.

Chinese certainly have attempted to burn Yasukuni shrine by throwing Molotov cocktails. So there's that.

Gosh what a dark and gloomy country Japan has become! Need to lighten up a little!

It comes with the event, France, Thailand, USA, Italy, Spain all these tourists destinations face the same problem but it's all handled according to the laws of these nations, Japan is doing the same and there is NO NEED to just keep publishing it, it's the norm and considered minor when compared to what goes on in Europe.

He didn’t even get a counselor officer “diplomat” visit. He got an embassy staff visit, which means non-American, most likely, Filipino staff member. That means the Americans don’t care about helping this guy.

5.86 trillion yen is a hard thing to just give away for few misbehaved tourists.

The guy is 65 and behave like this?

It’s the Peter Pan Syndrome.

@Antiquesaving Or the Japanese youths breaking branches off the Sakura and Kinmokusei trees in one of my local parks on weekend nights.

Tamanegi, if the Japanese kids and or adults caught doing just what you described they are arrested, and it is worse for them because they do not get the same treatment when they are interrogated it's worse no lawyer when interrogated and this is the same for the foreigners. The difference is the cops know they have to deal with embassies and other headaches when dealing with foreigners, and so, they have a little more protection.

One person spoke about the Chinese tours well I am sure the numbers of them have declined and will continue to decline as the economy over there continues to decline.

The number of Americans and Europeans are only going to increase until there is a recession and I expect that to be sooner than later if Trump keeps putting his inexperienced and incompetent cronies into positions of power.

A 65 year old man child jerk who should go home.

At least he wasn't live-streaming as bad as it was, these idiots are just the absolute worst, but that goes to show you if they can deface a monument, how do you think they act at home, I don't know if it has something to do with their upbringing or environment or being influenced by crazy social media attention-seekers, the point is (and they should ask themselves this fundamental question) would you do the same kind of thing in your home, your parents or friends home and if they say, "yes" then these people should not be roaming the streets, an it's even worse if you are 65 years old, there is just no excuse or justification for these acts, none.

No fastchecker I do not agree he should be made a poster boy at the airports for not what to do in Japan and not only for Americans all nationalities who choose to visit. The Japanese Government should post a video from You Tube of Japanese prisons and what happens if you deface the countries national treasures. I have been in Japan for 30 years with no issues with police and if you follow the laws which are nothing extortionary one will enjoy their travels.

U.S. Embassy staff visited the American and are providing consular assistance

you have got to be kidding me. USA taxpayers are providing assistance to this idiot. Lock up the whole group for being accomplices. They can spend a year in jail and then pay their own deportation flight back.

It seems the number of idiots that lack understanding for cultural values is on the rise. Why, lazy parents, sloppy education, mental illness, who knows? Japan should put a very serious punishment on each and every one of these purps. Serious enough so that media will make it headlines in their home country. Why not 3 years in prison and a fine of 100000 US. I think that would make this purp think twice next time.

U.S. Embassy staff visited the American and are providing consular assistance, a spokesperson said, declining to give further details due to privacy concerns.

They should be providing a consular slap in the head!

Nothing tops going around kicking Nara deer in front of tourists, betraying a trust between humans and deer built up for centuries

Carving initials is not that big of a deal according to my American friend in their country, the man just thought it was just some piece of wooden post. He didn’t realize Meiji Jingu is the national shrine and a cultural heritage site.

That idiot, imbecile, is a disgrace to the human race…

should be barred , exiled from any future visitation rights.

yere…..

with downgrading of the Yen, too many tourists, over crowding…

The barbarians have arrived.

Maybe , sacrilege to sacred sites , should incur a prison sentence…

set an example!

And Japanese prisons aren’t the 5 star retreats of the western world…

And maybe , some extra surveillance would be handy…

the only possible mitigating factor i can imagine is that there are other initials carved there. can anyone nearby verify that there are NOT? if not, hang 'im high! like with graffiti, a culture can tolerate it all over or demand it be totally absent; good luck trying to navigate a middle ground.

An international "criminal" record should be made of all those that damage/vandalize cultural and/or religious property and whenever applying for a visa or entering a country this should be subject to examination.

Respect needs to be a human value, not disrespect.

I'm worried were the human society is heading if there aren't any good principles and values as part of the education that families should be handing down.

The only services the embassy provide to Americans detained by the police in Japan is to advize them of the rights),or lack thereof) in Japan and see that they are provided with a translator. None of this is at the expense of the taxpayers .

Stupidity knows no nationality bounds. I remember a japanese student being arrested somewhere in Europe for carving his initials in a historic monument. When I was in Singapore I saw a group of japanese tourists climbing and taking pictures on a monument to the Singaporeans executed by the japanese in WWII. There were some pissed off Singaporeans there that day.

public drunkenness

only funny part of the article. The public drunks are 90% Japanese

Gambare:

Chinese certainly have attempted to burn Yasukuni shrine by throwing Molotov cocktails. So there's that.

Give the racism a rest, will ya? I don't hear a peep from you when it's local crime committed by locals. One Chinese commits a crime and suddenly all Chinese are criminals. One Japanese commits a crime and not a word from you.

I have been to Japan many times. This is my Spiritual Home.

I am from New Zealand. Stupid tourists doing stupid things just make me sad.

I hope this idiot is heavily fined, deported and banned from entering Japan again.

40 million tourists. one idiot. Not bad going.

Name and shame him, fine him to cover the repairs, put him in prison for a few months and then deport him. Other countries will not let him in. His future holidays will be in America.

Just cover it up with wood filler from the hardware store and stop all the drama

Japan welcomed nearly 27 million visitors through September, a record pace, and their spending added 5.86 trillion yen to the economy.

For every 5 people arrested you earn a trillion yen. It's the best business ever. You don't need to talk to Elon Musk to do the math.

@Tamarama

OMG thank you, I’ve been thinking the same thing how everything was so serene and calm during the covid years, I do like bustling crowds here and there but these days, it’s gone bananas.. I was in Ginza last weekend and I literally could not move forward or take turns because of the crowds moving in groups in all directions stopping here and there.

Going back to this story I read this in a different website!! I was horrified, if anyone has the nerve to defend this type of behavior that’s a problem. The crime must be properly charged to set an example since obviously people don’t have the common decency to care and respect other cultures.

40 million tourists and only a handful of trash bins. Surprise-complaints about litter! Come on, Japan, you can do better than this. Bring back those bins.

@Fighto

I concur with all your comments not only in this particular article but also others as well. Sometimes I bypass commenting because you’ve already mentioned the gist of everything, so thanks, and yes to the Chinese visitors. If there ever comes an article about the misbehaving Chinese tourists not only in Japan but in the world in general, I would have many stories to share….

John-SanToday 06:07 am JST

Sanction any USA and Israeli citizen from international travel. Sorry I correct that. Israelis are occupiers so can not be refer to as citizens.

Even China doesn't do that.

I've heard Americans way before I could see them, in a place where keeping quiet was obviously the norm.

I've seen Chinese by the bus loads in Akiba, fighting among themselves over who could buy that last discounted item - half of Akiba's Kanda side shops are now specialised on Chinese tourists and the sales are booming. The other half, most charming RadioShop,etc. are on the verge of disappearing.

Missing the good old COVID days.

27 million tourists.... and of course here in Japan we're gonna read about every bad thing they do. While there are 123 million Japanese and even though I see them often on trains at night causing a lot of trouble and who knows what else, I rarely read anything about their conduct. The Japanese are pretty much perfect... no need for prisons in Japan.

tokyo_mNov. 15  09:29 pm JST

Japan welcomed nearly 27 million visitors through September...

27 million tourists, but everyone seems obsessed with just a handful of idiots.

That's correct. One bad apple....as they say. These idiots ruin it for everyone else.

The moron (Steve Lee Hayes) is simply an over-entitled boomer who acted like he's never had a day of respect or responsibility in his life. This idiot faces up to three years in prison or a fine of up to 300,000 yen ($1,918) for the alleged vandalism which I've read he's confessed to. He's not the only boomer to act like a world-class moron as a late in Japan - in September you just had that Austrian 61 year old bag-of-bones banging away for the world to see at temple at Kesennuma.

Throw their @$$'s in prison (hard labor no less), make them serve their sentence and pay their fines, and then have the Japanese Government declare them persona non grata from ever entering Japan again. This type of crap wouldn't fly in Singapore, as those old buzzard's would've gotten the life caned out of them for such foolishness.

"on suspicion of using his fingernail to etch five letters representing family names into the wooden pillar, Jiji said".

He must have extremely strong fingernails.

Charge ¥10,000 (or more) tourist tax upon arrival. Use this money to help pay down the government debt.

stickman1760Nov. 15 05:39 pm JST

I know the down votes will flow in but really don’t care, tourism is ruining Japan

Yeah, tourism is responsible for bad government, inflation, low wages, low birthrate, family crime, etc. Uh huh.

As an American, on behalf of all Americans, I would like to deeply apologize for the coarse, offensive, insensitive, ignorant behavior of my fellow countrymen. Japan is the height of decorum. The United States is the opposite. My sincere apologies for this man's uncouth behavior, and for all the Johnny Somali and Logan Paul types that come to Japan and destroy the peace and vandalize the country.

I seen pictures of the arrest on another website, and he was wearing a White Dudes for Harris t-shirt, and I laugh!

JapanJimToday  10:39 am JST

I seen pictures of the arrest on another website, and he was wearing a White Dudes for Harris t-shirt, and I laugh!

I doubt you "seen" that, but if you say so.

I sincerely apologize for the disrespect shown by this individual towards such a significant cultural site in your country. It's truly disheartening to witness such behavior, especially from someone who should know better. I hope you can find it in your heart not to judge all Americans by the actions of one person.

Like many others, I have deep admiration for Japan’s rich culture, history, and stunning landmarks, particularly its beautiful shrines. Thank you for your understanding.

We should all remember that the Japanese government controls the inflow and outflow of tourists in Japan.

Too many tourists?

Don’t like it?

The action to be taken is rather obvious,isn’t it?

What a DB. Kick him out and don't let him back in.

But on that note, out of the 27 million that have come in this year, how many crimes? What's that percentage related to crimes committed by locals? And how much did they bring in this year again, money-wise?