Japan’s crackdown on errant diners in the wake of “sushi terrorism “ has intensified after two men were arrested for using their chopsticks to take a condiment from a communal container at an Osaka restaurant.
The arrests of Toshihide Oka and Ryu Shimazu came as the country’s budget food service sector attempts to contain a wave of bad behavior among clientele that began early this year at popular chain restaurants.
Oka, 34, and Shimazu, 35, are accused of obstruction of business after they used their chopsticks to eat pickled ginger from a container intended for all customers at a restaurant run by the gydon (beef bowl) chain in September last year, police said.
Photo: AP
The men, whose clip of the prank was widely shared on social media, are also accused of destroying property by contaminating the container and ginger with their utensils. Diners are supposed to use separate chopsticks to add toppings to their dish.
The video appears to show a man, believed to be Shimazu, repeatedly shoveling pickled ginger into his mouth.
Kyodo News said Oka told police that he “wanted to make people laugh.”
“I asked [Shimazu] to do something funny, and he suddenly ate it. I shared it on social media because it was so funny. I wanted everyone to see it,” he was quoted as saying.
Kyodo News said both men had confessed to the allegations.
Yoshinoya, which operates about 1,000 restaurants in Japan, reported the incident to police after it became aware of the video in February.
It was forced to temporarily close the outlet in Osaka, replace the pickled ginger and disinfect all of its containers.
“It is truly regrettable that this news has caused discomfort and anxiety among customers, and has called into question the safety and security of eating out in general,” a spokesperson for the firm said. “We sincerely hope this will not happen again.”
The arrests come a week after a man was indicted for licking the top of a communal soy sauce bottle at a revolving sushi restaurant in February.
Two other people have been arrested in connection with the incident.
The indicted 21-year-old was reportedly encouraged by social media posts showing people carrying out acts of “sushi terrorism,” including one incident in which a teenager licked the rim of a teacup before placing it back on a shelf and then wiped saliva on a passing plate of sushi.
A new online voting system aimed at boosting turnout among the Philippines’ millions of overseas workers ahead of Monday’s mid-term elections has been marked by confusion and fears of disenfranchisement. Thousands of overseas Filipino workers have already cast their ballots in the race dominated by a bitter feud between President Ferdinand Marcos Jr and his impeached vice president, Sara Duterte. While official turnout figures are not yet publicly available, data from the Philippine Commission on Elections (COMELEC) showed that at least 134,000 of the 1.22 million registered overseas voters have signed up for the new online system, which opened on April 13. However,
EUROPEAN FUTURE? Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama says only he could secure EU membership, but challenges remain in dealing with corruption and a brain drain Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama seeks to win an unprecedented fourth term, pledging to finally take the country into the EU and turn it into a hot tourist destination with some help from the Trump family. The artist-turned-politician has been pitching Albania as a trendy coastal destination, which has helped to drive up tourism arrivals to a record 11 million last year. US President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, also joined in the rush, pledging to invest US$1.4 billion to turn a largely deserted island into a luxurious getaway. Rama is expected to win another term after yesterday’s vote. The vote would
ALLIES: Calling Putin his ‘old friend,’ Xi said Beijing stood alongside Russia ‘in the face of the international counter-current of unilateralism and hegemonic bullying’ Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) yesterday was in Moscow for a state visit ahead of the Kremlin’s grand Victory Day celebrations, as Ukraine accused Russia’s army of launching air strikes just hours into a supposed truce. More than 20 foreign leaders were in Russia to attend a vast military parade today marking 80 years since the defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II, taking place three years into Russia’s offensive in Ukraine. Putin ordered troops into Ukraine in February 2022 and has marshaled the memory of Soviet victory against Nazi Germany to justify his campaign and rally society behind the offensive,
Myanmar’s junta chief met Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) for the first time since seizing power, state media reported yesterday, the highest-level meeting with a key ally for the internationally sanctioned military leader. Senior General Min Aung Hlaing led a military coup in 2021, overthrowing Myanmar’s brief experiment with democracy and plunging the nation into civil war. In the four years since, his armed forces have battled dozens of ethnic armed groups and rebel militias — some with close links to China — opposed to its rule. The conflict has seen Min Aung Hlaing draw condemnation from rights groups and pursued by the
RSS