theTokyoBill Japan news brief

theTokyoBill Japan news brief, October 2 2024

In this episode: Iranian national wanted for robbery, charges dropped; JAL resumes hires of overseas flight attendants; “Sugar Baby Riri” sentence handed down for dating scams; Trending sales of shrine, temple lands lead to restrictions on bad-faith buyers; Gunma University develops marine plastic breakdown technology; Airport runway explosion in Miyazaki

Broadcast on:: 02 Oct 2024
Audio Format:: other

A short (3-5 min.) English language news brief; stories from in and around Japan.

Music is Motivate by Wavecont, care of Pixabay.com.

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[MUSIC PLAYING] Welcome to the Tokyo Bill, a short news brief on recent events in and around Japan. Prosecutors have decided not to indict an Iranian man in connection with the 2001 robbery in Tokyo involving about 100 million yen. The man was deported from Japan shortly after the incident, but was arrested in July in Kansai Airport. When he tried to re-enter using a fake French passport, he was suspected of shooting two security guards in front of a bank and stealing cash. And he had been on an international wanted list. Authorities have not provided a reason for dropping the charges against him. One of his accomplices is still being sought by police while the other was arrested in Japan in 2002. Japan Airlines has resumed its recruitment of flight attendants in the Philippines through a partnership with TDG Human Resource Management. The program, which was postponed due to the pandemic, is now aiming to recruit new attendants to join the company by January 2025. TDG will assist in the selection process and provide Japanese language and customer service training to the recruits. The flight attendants will undergo final training in Japan before working on Jao's routes between Manila and Tokyo, as well as other international routes. This initiative is part of Jao's efforts to meet the increasing demand for travel to Japan. A 26-year-old Japanese woman was sentenced to eight years and six months in prison for defrauding three men out of $1 million on a dating app. My Watanabe had already paid damages to one victim, allowing for a reduced sentence by six months. The Nagoya High Court judge also upheld an eight million yen fine and ordered Watanabe to think about compensating the victims beyond just money. She was found guilty of cheating men out of a total of 155 million yen, tax evasion, and selling manuals teaching women how to scam men. (upbeat music) As Japan's population decreases and interest in religion diminishes, there are fewer people maintaining the country's temples and shrines. This has led to a rise in religious properties being sold, raising concerns that some buyers may not have spiritual intentions, but rather seek to evade taxes or launder money. The Agency for Cultural Affairs in Japan is worried about this trend, as selling off or repurposing religious properties has caused public outrage. Efforts are being made to prevent the exploitation of inactive religious sites by buyers who seek preferential tax benefits. While changes to laws regarding the purchase of religious sites are being approached cautiously to avoid infringing on religious freedom guaranteed by Japan's constitution. A research group led by Professor Kenichi Kasia of Gunma University has developed a technology to enhance marine biodegradability of plastics. As the number of marine microbes with the requisite enzymes to degrade aliphatic polyesters is relatively low. Biodegradation in the marine environment is very slow. The researchers added microbial attractants to biodegradable plastics to increase the breakdown rate and achieve complete biodegradation in the marine environment. Gene analysis showed that the technology changed the composition of the microbial community in the environment, promoting the biodegradation of plastics. This study is the first to show enhanced marine biodegradability by accumulating degrading microorganisms around the material. Miyazaki Airport in Southwest Japan closed its runway on Wednesday due to an explosion on a taxiway, although no injuries were recorded. Local firefighters responded to reports of an explosion at 8 to 10 a.m. And transport officials discovered a seven meter wide and one meter deep hold on the taxiway. All flights to and from the airport were suspended as a result with the closure anticipated to last through the evening. The airport, located approximately five kilometers from the capital of Miyazaki Prefecture, serves Osaka and Tokyo's Haneda Airport as well as international flights. This has been the Tokyo Bill. These stories and more you can read at thetokyobill.com. I've been and remain Tokyo Bill. Thank you for listening and take care. (gentle music)