A 30-year-old man, who was at large for nearly seven weeks after escaping from a police station in Osaka Prefecture in mid-August, masqueraded as a cycle tourist, spun a web of lies and stole basic goods including clothes and a bicycle, investigative sources said Wednesday.
Junya Hida, from Osaka Prefecture, had told a 44-year-old Wakayama man with whom he was traveling by bicycle that he was also from Wakayama, they said.
Osaka police suspect Hida tried to befriend the man by saying they have the same hometown, and traveled along with him to avoid appearing like a lone fugitive.