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August 11, 2026
 

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JAPANESE COURTS

The Sapporo District Court on Friday handed down a life imprisonment to a 19-year-old man who led a fatal group assault.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Aug 7, 2026
Teen sentenced to life in prison over leading role in fatal 2024 Hokkaido group assault
Prosecutors sought the sentence for Yuto Kawaguchi, 19, arguing he should bear the greatest responsibility for leading the assault on 20-year-old university student Tomoya Hase.
Prosecutors are also seeking a ?2 million fine for a former Tokyo massage parlor operator accused of making a 12-year-old Thai girl provide sexual services.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Aug 7, 2026
Six years sought for former massage parlor operator over Thai girl case
The operator allegedly forced the girl, then 12, to do sexual acts to male customers and himself last year without confirming her age, according to the indictment.
The Chiba District Court on Thursday sentenced Masahide Kanayama, 63-year-old doctor, to 18 months in prison, suspended for three years, for damaging historic buildings at Katori Jingu Shrine and Naritasan Shinshoji Temple in 2015.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Aug 7, 2026
U.S.-based doctor sentenced in historic building vandalism case
Masahide Kanayama is a Japanese national who lived in the United States until being extradited to Japan earlier this year.
The Manga One app operated by publisher Shogakukan. A third-party panel at the publisher said Monday that the company's manga app editorial department had "encouraged and supported the violation of human rights" of a woman who had been subject to sexual misconduct by a male manga artist.
JAPAN / Society
Aug 4, 2026
Third-party probe finds Shogakukan ¡®encouraged¡¯ human rights violations
The published hired a male manga artist who had committed sexual misconduct as an author for a new series under a different pseudonym.
Former Justice Minister Masako Mori speaks at the Foreign Correspondents¡¯ Club of Japan in Tokyo on Monday.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Aug 3, 2026
Former justice minister calls for independent probe into Japan public prosecutors
A succession of recent scandals has shown the service can no longer be trusted to investigate itself, lawmaker Masako Mori said.
Prosecutor Masahito Nishida, 48, was dismissed Wednesday over an inappropriate relationship he had with a woman he had investigated while serving on the Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office's special investigation squad.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jul 30, 2026
Tokyo prosecutor dismissed for improper relations with subject of investigation
Before a summary order against the woman was finalized, Masahito Nishida engaged in sexual acts with her at a hotel paid for using public funds.
Makoto Saito (left) ¡ª co-head of the legal team representing the family of Koki Miyata, a man who was acquitted of a 1985 murder after a retrial in 2019 ¡ª speaks during a news conference after a ruling by the Fukuoka High Court on Monday.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jul 28, 2026
Kumamoto ordered to pay damages over wrongful conviction in 1985 murder case
The Kumamoto Prefectural Police investigation of the case was ruled unlawful as it was conducted with the aim of extracting a confession from the suspect who was acquitted in 2019.
Two Ainu men sit in front of an altar during a memorial service for Ainu people killed by <i>wajin</i> (ethnic Japanese) in a 15th-century battle in Kaminokuni, Hokkaido, in 2019.
JAPAN / Regional Voices: Hokkaido
Jul 20, 2026
With lawsuit over remains, Ainu continue fight for cultural recognition
The Shibechari Ainu Tribe in Hokkaido hopes the lawsuit will set a legal precedent that helps address the injustices stemming from the removal of Ainu remains from their graves.
The Osaka Bar Association holds a rally in September. The association has been supporting member lawyers dealing with physical and mental health issues, many of which arise from the heavy workloads and unique pressures of the legal profession.
JAPAN
Jul 20, 2026
Osaka bar group offering mental health support for lawyers
The Osaka Bar Association started providing support for its members in 2008, when it established a consultation desk staffed by lawyer-consultants with expertise in various fields.
A bill to amend the Code of Criminal Procedure was enacted at an Upper House plenary session on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 17, 2026
Â鶹´«Ã½ parliament passes bill to revise retrial system
The revised code will prohibit prosecutors from appealing court orders to initiate retrials in principle, while some exceptions will be allowed on sufficient grounds.
The Fukuoka Prefectural Police obtained a notice Kudokai had sent to other groups saying its leader, Satoru Nomura, had retired.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jul 16, 2026
Kudokai yakuza group undergoes leadership change
Satoru Nomura, who became Kudokai¡¯s leader in 2011 and has been given a life sentence over attacks on citizens, will be replaced by Fumio Tanoue, the group¡¯s chairman.
The Tokyo District Court has sentenced a man to 16 years in prison for fatally stabbing a woman livestreaming on a street in Tokyo&#039;s Takadanobaba district.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jul 15, 2026
Man sentenced to 16 years in prison for killing livestreaming woman
Kenichi Takano stabbed Airi Sato multiple times on a Tokyo street after he had lent her millions in yen.
Reika Kuroki and an advertising agency where she serves as president were charged with evading corporate and other taxes totaling ?157 million in the year through January 2021 and the two years through January 2024.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jul 15, 2026
Japanese social media influencer given suspended sentence over tax evasion
The Tokyo District Court also imposed a fine of ?40 million on an advertising agency for which influencer Reika Kuroki serves as president.
A group of police officers walks outside the Ariake Tennis Park at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, in August 2021.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jul 15, 2026
Former event business executive found guilty over Tokyo Games bid-rigging
Tokyo District Court sentenced the 66-year-old former executive, Masahiko Fujino, to one year and eight months in prison, suspended for three years.
All Nippon Airways captain Ryota Mise was sentenced to one year and eight months in prison for sexually assaulting a flight attendant by grabbing her buttocks, the Tokyo District Court ruled Tuesday.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jul 15, 2026
ANA captain jailed for sexually assaulting flight attendant
Judge Takao Okawa said the defendant committed a ¡°despicable¡± sexual assault that abused his position as captain.
Kansai Electric Power&#039;s Oi nuclear plant No.1 through No. 4 reactors in Fukui Prefecture
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jul 14, 2026
Kyoto District Court rejects suit seeking halt of Oi nuclear plant
The plaintiffs had argued the risks related to the stability of the nuclear plant¡¯s foundations were underestimated and that evacuation plans were flawed.
Hyogo prefectural assembly member Kenichi Okutani (right) and his attorney hold a news conference in Kobe on Monday.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jul 14, 2026
Decision not to indict anti-NHK group¡¯s head found to be inappropriate
During the campaign for the 2024 Hyogo gubernatorial election, Takashi Tachibana gave an allegedly intimidating speech in front of a prefectural assembly member¡¯s home-cum-office.
A government building that houses the Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office and the Tokyo High Public Prosecutors Office
JAPAN
Jul 9, 2026
Tokyo prosecutor suspected of having inappropriate relationship
The Supreme Public Prosecutors Office released a statement saying that it is investigating the 48-year-old prosecutor.
People observe a moment of silence in Nara on Wednesday, which marks four years since the fatal shooting of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jul 8, 2026
Abe remembered four years after fatal shooting
Former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was fatally shot on July 8, 2022, during a stump speech in front of Kintetsu Railway¡¯s Yamato-Saidaiji Station in Nara.
Zentoshin served around 200,000 shops, many of which rely on early payments to maintain cash flow, raising concerns over their financial stability following the disruption.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jul 8, 2026
Japanese payment processor¡¯s collapse hits banks and restaurants
Zentoshin, an Osaka-based credit card payment processor, filed for bankruptcy on Monday.
America¡¯s cyberforces grapple with cluster of deaths by suicide
The U.S. Cyber Command building (center) stands on the National Security Agency campus at Fort Meade, Maryland.
Many Indonesians named after Japanese anime characters
Some people in Indonesia are named Doraemon, the name of a lead character of the blockbuster anime series with the same title.
Yasukuni Shrine introduces ban on military attire and cosplay
People gather in front of thousands of lanterns on display at Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo on July 15 during the Mitama Matsuri, one of the capital&#039;s largest summer o-Bon festivals.
As countries ban social media for children, Japan mulls a different approach
Data from NTT Docomo¡¯s Mobile Society Research Institute released in June found that 55% of respondents across all age groups said they fiddled with their phones when they had nothing to do, even when another person was in front of them.
¡®Total whiplash¡¯: Foreign residents react to Â鶹´«Ã½ changing permanent residency rules
The entrance to the Tokyo Immigration Bureau in Minato Ward, Tokyo, in March. For some foreign residents of Japan, tightening measures for permanent residency have become one factor in a broader calculation over whether remaining in the country makes financial sense over the long term.
¡®Total whiplash¡¯: Foreign residents react to Â鶹´«Ã½ changing permanent residency rules
The entrance to the Tokyo Immigration Bureau in Minato Ward, Tokyo, in March. For some foreign residents of Japan, tightening measures for permanent residency have become one factor in a broader calculation over whether remaining in the country makes financial sense over the long term.
Â鶹´«Ã½ brewers experiment with a secret ingredient: music
At Smoke Craft, a craft beer brewery in Tokorozawa, Saitama Prefecture, music isn&#039;t just a background to the brewing process ¡ª it&#039;s an ingredient.
As countries ban social media for children, Japan mulls a different approach
Data from NTT Docomo¡¯s Mobile Society Research Institute released in June found that 55% of respondents across all age groups said they fiddled with their phones when they had nothing to do, even when another person was in front of them.
J. League enters new era as league kicks off first fall-spring campaign
Players from each J. League club pose during a kickoff event on Monday ahead of the start of the 2026-27 campaign.
Speaking Japanese at the movies with ¡®Chiikawa¡¯
A "Chiikawa The Movie" poster is seen at Toho Cinemas in Shinjuku Ward, Tokyo.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo¡¯s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo¡¯s ¡®stadium of desire¡¯

Longform

Disaster relief workers Taichi Kato (left) and Seiji Yoshimura enter the collapsed living quarters at Kyuganji temple in Yatsushiro, Kumamoto Prefecture.
What Kumamoto revealed about Â鶹´«Ã½ earthquake readiness
By Alex K.T. Martin

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