Junnosuke Taguchi, ex-member of boy Japanese boy band KAT-TUN, arrested over marijuana possession
Junnosuke Taguchi, a former member of Japanese boy band KAT-TUN, was arrested Wednesday on suspicion of possessing marijuana, the Narcotics Control Department said. The department arrested Taguchi, 33, at his apartment ...
Yamanashi governor looks to draw up Mt. Fuji railway plan in 2 years
The governor of Yamanashi Prefecture said Wednesday he will draw up in two years a railway plan to connect the bottom and the fifth station of Mount Fuji, the nation's ...
Man nabbed for pointing laser at U.S. military plane in Tokyo suburb
Police said Wednesday they have arrested a man on suspicion of aiming a laser pointer at a U.S. military aircraft flying in the vicinity of Yokota Air Base in the ...
347 pass Japan's foreign worker exam for jobs in the food service industry
Nearly 350 of the first group of non-Japanese nationals applying for newly created visas to work in Japan's food service industry have passed a qualifying exam, the implementing body has said. The Organization for Technical Skill Assessment of Foreign Workers in Food Industry said Tuesday ...
Chinese trainee on Japan's technical intern program gets suspended prison term for abandoning baby
A 22-year-old Chinese trainee in the technical intern program was given a suspended prison term for abandoning her newborn son last December for fear of being sent back home.
Empress Masako conducts first official duties since emperor's enthronement
Empress Masako conducted her first official duties Wednesday in her own capacity since her husband, Emperor Naruhito, ascended to the throne at the beginning of the month. The 55-year-old empress, who has been steadily recovering from an adjustment disorder, appeared at the Japanese Red Cross ...
Government decides route of October parade to celebrate Emperor Naruhito's enthronement
The government said Tuesday it has decided on the October parade route to be taken by the imperial couple to celebrate Emperor Naruhito's ascension to the throne earlier this month. The open motorcade is expected to spend 30 minutes driving the 4.6 kilometers from the ...
Mayors of major world cities gathered in Tokyo on Wednesday asked Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to lead debate on pressing global issues such as climate change at the Group of 20 summit next month in Osaka. The local government leaders from the "Urban 20," or ...
Time for a change? Japan wants international media to put family names first
Foreign Minister Taro Kono plans to ask overseas media outlets to write the names of Japanese people with the family name first, as is customary in the Japanese language. If realized, the new policy would mark a major shift in the country's long-running practice for ...
Chinese court sentences Japanese man to 6 years in prison for spying
A court in Beijing on Tuesday sentenced a Japanese man convicted of spying to six years in prison, according to sources familiar with Sino-Japanese relations. The court also ordered Hideji Suzuki, the head of a Japan-China youth exchange association, to pay a fine of 50,000 ...
Best-selling nonfiction writer Tamotsu Sugano was referred to prosecutors earlier this month after allegations he attempted to sexually assault a woman in 2012, police said Wednesday. According to investigative papers sent to prosecutors on May 14, Sugano is suspected of having pushed the woman onto ...
Flying the friendly skies: Okinawa student reunites with mystery benefactor who loaned him airfare
A high school student in Okinawa Prefecture reunited Tuesday with an unknown benefactor who lent him money when he lost his wallet to buy a ticket for a flight, after he managed to get in touch with him with the help of local newspapers. Soma ...
