American tourist detained for bringing handgun into Japan
An American tourist has landed in hot water in Japan, after they brought a handgun into the country in their luggage.
On Wednesday April 2nd, the Hyogo Prefectural Police issued a statement regarding the apprehension of a tourist from the United States, following his own report that he had inadvertently transported a handgun into Japan.
The individual, a 73-year-old male, was taken into custody on March 24th on suspicion of unlawful possession of a revolver.
This alleged offense occurred at a terminal building located within Kobe Port, situated in Kobe, Hyogo Prefecture, on March 23rd. Law enforcement officials have subsequently forwarded the case documentation to the public prosecutor’s office.
The Hyogo Prefectural Police have formulated a hypothesis that the handgun in question circumvented security protocols at Kansai International Airport, which is located in Osaka Prefecture.
The arrested individual has asserted that the firearm was intended for self-defense purposes and that he had mistakenly packed it within his luggage.
According to information provided by the police, the man had arrived in Japan via a flight originating from an airport in the state of Hawaii.
On March 23rd, he informed a crew member of a cruise ship, on which he was scheduled to embark from Kobe Port, that he had unintentionally brought a handgun with him, having discovered the firearm within his baggage.
Based on the statements provided by the individual, investigating authorities conducted a search and located three rounds of ammunition within a refuse receptacle located in a restroom at the port’s terminal.
The tourist was quoted as stating that he had disposed of the ammunition as he believed the legal repercussions of having both a gun and ammo would be more severe.
Many have questioned how a firearm could have been transported into the country to begin with, as this would indicate a lapse in security at both the point of the tourist leaving his home country and upon entering Japan.
There does however appear to be a simple explanation as to how the man was able to travel with the firearm.
A statement issued by a public relations representative from Daniel K. Inouye International Airport, situated in Hawaii, from which the individual in question had departed, was issued regarding the man’s situation.
The representative stated, “Provided that a firearm within a passenger’s luggage is appropriately packed,” the airport “does not implement any specific countermeasures, even if their intended destination is a country where the possession of firearms is prohibited by law.”
As gun regulations differ between countries, it cannot be consistently relied upon that airport or airline personnel at one’s point of departure will identify and rectify any errors made by passengers.
Essentially, this implies that it is entirely plausible for a departure airport to permit a traveler to proceed with items contained within their baggage that, by the mere act of possessing them, would constitute a violation of the law upon their arrival in Japan.
On Wednesday 2nd April, the Hyogo Prefectural Police formally transferred the man’s case to the prosecutor’s office, which also marked the police’s initial official public disclosure of the man’s arrest.
Subsequently, on Thursday April 3rd, the prosecutor’s office announced that they would not be pursuing charges against the man, without providing any explanation for the rationale behind this decision.
The incident has prompted an internal investigation into how the handgun slipped through security procedures at Kansai International Airport, as despite the fact no charges have been levied against the man, had he had any ill intent the gun could have been used or transferred for criminal purposes.
Source: Jiji