prinzjay comments

This situation feels like a blackmail.

This lady could easily frame this guys on false charges..knowing they will be arrested and could be squeezed for a big payout....during detention before trial....your Japanese lawyer will ask you "How much money can you pay or your family can pay to have this matter resolved or have the charges reduced??".....if you have deep pockets and willing to shell out 50 million yen or 1000 million yen in this case...these guys might just walk out the door with the charges dropped...or at least receive a very mild prison sentence.

@Probie....the man in question probably entered Japan legally....but possibly due to his visa being expired...maybe even years ago...he cannot leave. If he attempts to leave Japan with an expired visa...he will be detained..arrested and prosecuted.

Now this guy was caught in possession of a stolen passport and attempted to use it to leave Japan and then escapes from custody...he just compounded his problems and now faces serious prison time. Why would anybody use a stolen passport to flee Japan?? Because he is a law breaker. Cant think of any other reason.

BTW: All this guy had to do was turn himself in...spend 10 to 14 days in jail...go to court..get kicked to immigration...make sure he had plenty of money to buy a ticket home...and he would gone within days!! But no..he had try and make a 007 style escape...and it failed. Sad.

I know a few people who've overstayed their visas, and had no ill effects beyond a stern talking to

I dont what kind of friends you have...but overstaying your visa in Japan will get you arrest..no exceptions. What happened to your friends after they got a "stern lecture"...they got to walk free around Japan without a proper visa in Japan?? I doubt it.

I think you are confusing two different situations. I believe you are confusing foreigners who dont carry their passports or Gaijin cards with them at all times and got caught...that usually results in a stern lecture, nothing more. Staying in Japan on an expired visa will get you locked up and deported...Guaranteed...just ask the poor souls stuck in Immigration..if you can.

That said, how long did you overstay your visa, and what type was it?

I was arrested for "Shougai".....thats assault and was held in jail (10 weeks) until 6 days after my visa expired...that was a prosecutor ploy....knowing full well their was no evidence I committed a crime...after being released on my court date...I was remanded to the custody of Immigration officials....given a 3 year banishment by immigration and I purchased my plane ticket home a few days later. But there were dozens and dozens of foreigners ALL of them visa overstays stuck at immigration....waiting for transport to prison to work for 4 months to earn their tickets home, just as soon as their 60 days was over in immigration detention.

@Fadamore...Immigration officials usually give western people the benefit of the doubt and handles us with better treatment....clearly that was a mistake in this case. When I was in the Yokohama Immigration Detention facility and the Narita Immigration Detention facility, I was treated with kid gloves and respected.......while my follow inmates from other asian countries were treated like garbage and abused.

BTW: Lawsuit in Japan are rare, very expensive for the filer, very time consuming.....often taking 5 to 10 years and you can only sue for actual damages...there is no punitive damage awards in Japan...so whatever you do win, will be peanuts.

FYI: if you are deported from Japan.....the deportation stamp does not say "deported".....it will have a heavy black numbers like "54-37" stamped next your exit stamp. Your passport is ruined with that black stamp in it....so get another one.

VISA OVERSTAY CONSEQUENCES....FIRST HAND EXPERIENCE.... 1) You will be jailed in the local police station for up to 2 weeks..you will have a quick trial and be found guilty of violating the "Refugee and Immigration Control Act" and ordered to be deported.....2) You will be transferred to Immigration Detention..this is where things get ugly. Hopefully you have the money to by a ticket home...if not....you will remain in Immigration Detention custody for 60 days...you have access to phones and phone cards to call family and friends to ask for money...TV in your room you share with others...and so on. If by 60 days you do NOT get the money to buy a ticket back to your country...you are transferred to a prison in Ibaraki (if you're man), and thats if you are detained in the Kanto area. 3) You will be forced to work in a prison factory for 120 days for the ticket money home...if at anytime someone sends you money for your ticket to your home country...you can leave...if not, you work. For Americans...you are sent to Guam as thats the nearest US territory, should the Japanese government pay for your ticket after 60 days in Immigration Detention and 120 days in prison. DO NOT OVERSTAY!!! You will be SORRY!!!

Very Smart move or maybe not.....having a fake/stolen passport will net you years in prison in Japan. I met an Italian man who sentenced to two years in Fuchu prison for being possession of fake passport. How did I met him?? In jail. Now this escapee is facing possession of a stolen passport and escape....he's going to be doing hard time for sure.

Thanks for sharing this, it gives and idea of what others and this guy went through as well.

And they didn't deport you? Wow, pretty lucky.

No, I was not deported. It wasnt that big of a crime. My lawyer told me my visa was safe...so long as I wasnt sent to a year or more in prison (if my visa didnt expire before then). I was charged with "Shougai"...inflicting injury....the victim wanted 800,000 yen to drop the charges....I didnt have that kind of money....so I had to take my chances with the judge. I won....sort of.

Just want to share with others...the police will arrest and prosecute people for the smallest of crimes. I met people (Japanese people) in jail for using a marker to draw a mustache on a political campaign poster....or for causing a minor traffic accident with their cars.....now I know why the "Hey, its me!!" phone scams works so well.....if you dont pay the traffic accident victim money right away...you're going to jail really quick.

While I was sitting in my cell...I would see people come from interrogation or a new face come into the cell block in tears.

BTW: The Kohoku police department (Shin-Yokohama) has a sound proof plexiglass room inside a another room with a double steel door. It was reserved for for trouble makers in the cell block.....I just assumed it was a storage closet. I didnt know about it until an old man pretending to be mentally ill (to avoid being indicted) started making trouble..he was put in there for days in a row..and a stream of tough cops would pay him a visit several times a day...he was screaming bloody murder when those steel doors got opened...and the voice quickly disappeared when the steel doors shut. The last I saw of that old man...he was wearing a diaper and sporting bruises all over as he was lead away from the cell block probably to a mental ward somewhere. It was surreal.

I had the experience of being arrested and convicted of assault in Yokohama back in 2011........ I was not beaten...but the first 21 days was awful. I was not allowed to brush my teeth...because I could not spend the money I had in my pockets on toothpaste or soap when I was arrested until after I was indicted. You will meet the prosecutor on your 2nd day after arrest...the 10th day...the 21day....NO lawyer until AFTER you are indicted. I was interrogated everyday for hours on end...over and over and over. You get NO visitors until AFTER you are indicted....there is NO bail. The police will sit behind you if you have friends or family visit you....lawyer or Embassy staff will not require a police officer in the room. You get a bath...yes, bath...every 5 days. You can buy porn magazines...extra dinner bento, snacks...so make make sure you got somebody on the outside sending you money and english reading materials. NO english books....NO TV.....NO Phones....NO day room. 23.5 hours a day in a cell...NO bed..NO desk...NO chair...just the plastic tatami/wood floor. I could go on in detail....but in the end after 10 weeks in the Kohoku Jail....I plead guilty in court and was given 3 years probation and no fine...and walked out the door. If I fought the charges...I was looking at up to 3 years in Fuchu Prison.

Sorry, Chinese, Korean and Tawainese people...but acting like little children wont change anything. You lost a war to the Japanese and they get to keep it...thats just the rules.

China always tells offending countries they will damage ties with China if they dont this or do that, but its OK for China to do anything they want to other countries with impunity. I applaud Japan for standing their ground with China. Hopefully this issue will allow some serious discussion about enhancing national security within Japan. If countries allow China to indimidate them and allow China to push other countries around (i.e. Vietnam and others)...when will China`s bullying stop?? The answer is....it wont.

This whole incident is a test by China to see what reaction Japan would have....the thinking is by the communist government, "How far can we push Japan and what action will the Japanese take?"...hopefully this answered their questions. I expect more of these incidents to take place in the future.

booooring......<yawn>

This situation isnt only happening in Japan...its happening in a few other advenced societies as well. Its very sad...greedy corporations and incompetent/negligent government is to blame.

A robust forward presence of U.S. military forces in Japan, including in Okinawa, provides the deterrence and capabilities necessary for the defense of Japan and for the maintenance of regional stability. Okinawa is of regional importance because of the southern island's proximity to China, Taiwan and the Korean peninsula and can be in any one of these locations in amtter of hours in an emergemcy. Chinas military strength and technology will challenge counties in the region. China claims the entire South China Sea and so far has shown little inclination to take into account the claims of others, especially Vietnam. China refuses to accept free movement in international waters close to its territory as well as recognize the role of other countries in territorial disputes. Chinas willingness to use force on the high seas is a warning to Vietnam and other asian countries who dispute China’s territorial claims...such as the Sea of Japan oil and gas deposits. Chinas aggressive behavior is causing countries such Vietnam, Singapore, Mayalasia, Indonesia and the Phillipines to modernize their military to counter Chinas regional power.

As Chinas military power continues to grow, will it use force or the threat of force? Yes. China has used force to integrate Tibet and Xinjiang and lists them as "core" national sovereignty interests, along with Taiwan. Recently, China put the South China Sea in the same "core" interest category and would not accept any interference in internal affairs. Its a matter of time before the region is again in conflict and turmoil. Japan needs the U.S. and so does Japans neighbors. What keeps Japan safe is the fact that the U.S. would declare WWIII on any country that would invade or throw missles on Japan....and that threat alone keeps the peace. So, the argument of 15,000 US service members keep S. Korea is valid...N. Koreas million man army hasnt invade the south...has it?? Because it knows the U.S. military would wipe them off the map. This article is pure opinion piece garabage with no insight into the facts...an wannabe armchair general wrote this article.

Is that a photo of him arresting a black guy in a wheelchair?? What a loon.

LOL!

BTW: Mr. Awesome-Japanese-Bounty-Hunter-wanna-be-an-F.B.I-agent in Japan...you need to update your website under "Wanted"..those escaped inmates from Arizona..they have been apprehended (that means, captured) a few weeks ago. Just giving you a heads up and all, as you`re sooo busy tracking down stolen bicycles and umbrella thieves.

Oh, BTW: Your little plastic badge on the wanted page, "Bounty Hunter Shuichi Kamikaze Araki, National Association of Law Enforcement Explorers".....

For your information, the "National Association of Law Enforcement Explorers" is a worksite-based program for young men and women who have completed the eighth grade and are 14 years of age, or are 15 years of age but have not yet reached their 21st birthday. Just looking at your photos, Im guessing you are not under the age of 21. Just wanted to let you know your badge looks totally BOGUS.

Juts look at the top page of his website, http://www.bountyhunter-jp.com/index.html , and see how childish he is! Is he going to use that mini-gun chasing shop-lifting old women in Sugamo? If what's written on there isn't hilarious as it is, the photo page is amazing too, what a manchild!

Saw the "bounty-hunter" website...what a laugh!! Hahahahaaa!!! Click "LAW" button...he thinks he lives in America. I can tell you this Mr. Araki...since you are not an American citizen...there is no way you can carry a concealed or holstered handgun in America without the proper licenses which Im pretty you Mr. Araki wouldnt be qualified for. This website is PURE FANTASY including all the misspellings. No way Mr. Araki was ever employed as a bounty hunter in America...he would be a major liability.

But now I know why he works in Japan...he is after glory and small time cash rewards by going after "soft-crime" criminals in Japan, rather than the big bucks running down dangerous and violent criminals in Americans. You wouldnt last a day in America tracking fugitives down Mr. Awesome-Japanese-Bounty-Hunter-wanna-be-an-F.B.I-agent. Running a slick webpage loaded with BS and stolen pictures is an good way to fool the Japanese public to gain some "credibility". I just hope people in Japan are not fooled into believeing this guy...maybe teenagers might believe this character. This is just ridiculous.

This is a joke, right?? Sounds too funny to be true. A bunch of wanna-be`s running around arresting people and handling investiagtions. This is a recipe for a disaster in the making. Somebody is going to get their rights violated, false imprisonment/arrest, suffer injuries or worse because of a bunch of morons (mostly teenagers) running around pretending to be "undercover cops" with zero training or understanding of law.

So, this Araki character "employs" 70 people in a few cities...how do they get paid?? Off of reward money of 50,000yen..split how many times?? They want to hire kids to do "dangerous" field work?? How much do they get paid?? Probably not much...which is why they want to hire kids, because adults have the sense not to get mixed up in this kinda crap for low wages. Im willing to bet collecting cans for recycle pays more than what these "civilian cops" make.

Also, this Araki character claims he is the only Japanese licensed bounty hunter in America....its very easy to be bounty hunter in America....ex-cons and homeless people can be a bounty hunter in the states, with NO training or test....so thats not impressive. You could probably come to America as a tourist and apply for a license...just fill out the form and pay the fee..and presto..you are a cerified bounty hounter in America. Its that easy folks.

I really hope article this is a joke, because Japan is quickly turning into a freak show.

I dont give a fart what pakistanis think of America. America has been giving 100`s of billions of dollas in aid to Pakistan over the years and for what?? To line the pockets of jihadists and crooks.

Hostess club connection anyone?

Possibly an unpaid bill.

Dont blame yourself millenials...its the older generation that screwed you over by voting in and tolerating bad politicians, greedy investors, excessive bad loans, etc...and the younger generation is left to clean up the toxic mess from the 80s. 90s and 2000`s. I feel bad for the younger generation for the economic disaster they are stepping in...all because of the care-free, reckless and stupid decisions taht older people made a couple of decades ago. The Lost Decades were not caused by millenials...they were caused by baby-boomers.

If Ozawa wins...what is that...4 PMs in 2 years?? The DPJ is more focused on party politics than the problems/crisis that Japan faces. Give Kan a chance and more time...and stop the revoveling door of PMs.

Businesses would put up shop in Hong Kong, Shangahi, Singapore..places that are alot more foreign friendly and cheaper. Japan is a lost a cause.

There needs to be a cull of these monkeys. The mountains and forests of Japan are overrun with monkeys, wild boar, deer and bears...and there are very few hunters keeping these wild animal population under control. Expect to see more and more of these monkeys and other animals coming to town in search of food.

I dont like the donuts at Mister Donut...tastes like cardboard and wax. No Thank.

How many news reports and magazine articles have we read over the years about how billions and billions of dollars of aid that was provided to Iraq, Lebanon, Palestinians, Egypt, Afghanistan, Pakistan...meant for hungry people, money for water purification, infrastructure...etc...got stolen by government officials and placed in their pockets??? I dont blame Americans for being "paranoid" or suspicious about Pakistan. I guess Americans are getting wise to these shell games that counties in the Arab and Persian world like to play and Americans dont want to throw their hard earned money away anymore. Let the Pakistani rich and the government of Pakistan take care of this crisis....they have billions of dollars in stolen aid money in their accounts. Besides after decades and hundreds of billions of dollars in aid to the Arab and Persian world...what has America (and other countries) got to show for it?? Nothing.

i had to argue with 3 different instructors in the gym i work out at just because i wanted to squat and deadlift barefoot. apparently, you had to have shoes since it was the rule, and this is japan. honestly, that was their reasoning.

Its the same rules if you were in the U.S. or at Golds Gym. Barefoot spreads viruses and bacteria....most common is athletes foot. Keep your shoes on....its for your safety and for others.

I can understand the officers excuse "I didnt see the sign"....signage in this country is very much lacking and often placed in locations that is difficult to see. If someone is not from the local area, I can see how someone could miss it. Sounds like a local cop likes to tattle-tale on his co-workers. This is ridiculous.

There are on average of 3 Post Office robberies everyday in Japan. A pretty good percentage of them are caught by the cops, "hero citizens" and Post/bank staff. Ever see those orange balls behind the counter?? They are trained to throw those at robbers when they exit the building and their get-a-way bike, car..etc and get marked with dye to make identification easier. Its amazing to know quite a few robbers have been caught because of the dye splashed on their clothes and/or car/bike as they made a get-away. Post Office workers and Bank workers are taught passive resistence (moving slowly to get money, make excuse we need time to open the money box...etc.). This guy makes the news because he had a gun, which probably scared the crap out of everybody. He got the money fast and got away fast without the hassle.

There was one case a couple of years ago where a guy walked into a bank with a fire-extinguisher and walked out with over 20 million yen in cash.

Nishimura adds. “Places with similar functions should have been provided by the government, so in a sense the Net cafes have actually been functioning like welfare facilities. When you place restrictions on their use, it’s tantamount to eliminating this function.”

Very true and soooo sad. I cant believe Japan is considered a 1st world country when they treat their own citizens like this.