More than half of youths involved in child prostitution last year in the nation's three biggest metropolitan areas showed no signs of delinquency, had no criminal records and attended school regularly, according to a survey by the National Police Agency.
The findings suggest it is becoming increasingly difficult for parents and teachers to detect behavioral changes in young people, the agency said, while also warning that many juveniles were being victimized by people they had become acquainted with on social networking sites and through the use of smartphones.
The survey, released Tuesday, covered the cases of 193 girls and a boy in Tokyo, Osaka and Aichi prefectures in 2017. The victims were aged between 12 and 17, with the average being 15.8. One girl was involved in more than one case.