Police said Tuesday they have arrested two teenage boys for allegedly selling Ecstasy to a female high school student in Tokyo.
The teens, both of whom are 16 and cannot be named because they are minors, allegedly sold a tablet of Ecstasy to the 17-year-old girl for 4,000 yen on Nov. 17 at a public high school after school was out.
Later that month, the girl turned herself in at the Akasaka Police Station, saying she wanted to wash her hands of drugs. The police have turned her case over to prosecutors, citing an alleged violation of the Narcotics and Psychotropics Control Law.
One of the suspects, who is from Ota Ward and also a student at the school, allegedly began dealing Ecstasy in May, selling the stimulant for 1,000 yen to 5,000 yen per tablet. He said he became interested in Ecstasy after watching a TV program on drugs, the police said.
The youths were also quoted as telling investigators they obtained their supply from dealers in the Roppongi entertainment district and that they sold the tablets to several other students at the school.
The high school's 53-year-old principal apologized during a news conference for the fact that a place dedicated to educating youth had been used to peddle drugs.
He pledged to take steps to prevent a recurrence of similar incidents.
The other boy is from Shinagawa Ward and does not attend school, according to the police.
The boys said they have taken Ecstasy before and admitted to selling several tablets to teenagers at parties, they said.
Ecstasy is becoming increasingly popular in Japan. Authorities seized more than 300,000 tablets in 2003, compared with 8,600 in 1996.