Crime & Courts

Male Police Officer Suspected of Entering Women’s Restroom in Kobe; Claims “No Paper in Men’s Restroom”

Yomiuri Shimbun file photo
Hyogo Prefectural Police Headquarters

The Yomiuri Shimbun

20:25 JST, June 1, 2024

A male police officer claiming to have been “stranded” in the men’s restroom is facing charges on suspicion of entering the women’s restroom at a police facility in Kobe.

The case was sent to local district public prosecutor’s office on April 24 without the officer being arrested, according to information received Friday in response to a disclosure request submitted by The Yomiuri Shimbun.

According to the Hyogo prefectural police, the officer in his 20s is suspected of entering the women’s restroom on the second floor of the police facility without a valid reason on March 7.

The officer, who works in an unidentified police station in the Kansai region, said there was nothing lascivious about his action.

“I had to use the toilet, but there was no paper in the men’s restroom, so I thought to go to the women’s room to get some,” the officer told investigators. “It was not to commit a sexual offense.”