Man arrested over alleged assault of woman sleeping on train

The Yomiuri Shimbun

18:14 JST, December 3, 2022

A 39-year-old man has been arrested over the alleged assault of a woman sleeping on a train, Chiba prefectural police has announced.

According to the announcement, an office worker from Inzai, Chiba Prefecture, was arrested Wednesday on suspicion of indecent assault, attempted kidnapping and theft. The suspect is alleged to have assaulted a 35-year-old woman who was asleep on a Tokyo Metro Tozai Line train on May 19.

The man allegedly tried to lift the woman up between 11:25 p.m. and 11:55 p.m., but she resisted. He also allegedly stole the woman’s bag containing several tens of thousands of yen.

The man has denied the allegation, claiming he has no memory of the incident, according to the police.

The woman woke up when she felt herself being picked up. When the train reached the next station, the perpetrator fled from the carriage, which had been carrying other passengers.

Police identified the suspect from security camera footage and other sources.