Schoolgirl Foils Robbery Attempt
One would-be thief learned the hard way not to take schoolgirls lightly.
Japan has, of late, been plagued by a series of metal thefts. Though stealing raw materials (believed to be for export) seems like an odd sort of crime, in 2006 alone there were 5700 incidents spread across the country totaling 2 billion yen (about US$17 million).
So it wasn’t at all unusual when a man was arrested for trying to steal wire from an electrician’s storeroom in Itabashi, Tokyo. Except for who caught him: A 17-year-old high school girl.
The teenage crimefighter.
JNN is reporting that at 1:30am on the 17th of this month, the 17-year-old daughter of an electrician (shown here during the interview) was watching TV in her room on the third floor of her parents’ house when she noticed some activity outside. When she saw a man loading six bundles of copper wire and various other components (valued at 11,000 yen – about US$90) from the family business on the first floor into his car, she took action.
The man, who has been charged with attempted theft, runs an electrical business. He told police that he was intending to use the wire in his own business, and he might have succeeded had it not been for one tough daughter.
She rushed downstairs as the man was pulling away, drug him out of his car, and pinned him until the police arrived. More impressive still, she said during the interview with JNN that she doesn’t practice any martial art, or even any physical training—she wants to be a kindergarden teacher, not a police officer.
Her description of the incident: “I didn’t think I’d be able to catch the man by myself, so I was very surprised. Actually, I’m amazed I did that.
“I got there just as he was pulling away, so I started pounding on the car, then I pulled the guy out of the car and held him. He kept apologizing, like “I’m sorry! Please forgive me!” but I said “No, I won’t!””
That’s one teen you don’t want to mess with.