Indonesian Man Back in Custody After Fleeing Deportation Proceedings

The Yomiuri Shimbun

13:48 JST, May 1, 2023

An Indonesian man who fled after being processed for deportation in Tokyo was found in Nagoya City on Sunday.

He was taken into custody at the Immigration Service Agency’s Nagoya bureau.

According to the agency, the man, in his 20s, had come to Japan as a technical intern, but was picked up April 25 on suspicion of illegal residency and detained at the bureau.

The man visited the Indonesian Embassy in Shinjuku Ward, Tokyo, to undergo deportation procedures Friday morning, accompanied by staff from the Nagoya bureau. But after the procedures were completed, he ran away as he was about to board the bureau’s bus, evading staff attempts to restrain him.

A bureau employee located the man at a convenience store in Nagoya on Sunday afternoon and took him into custody. The man reportedly said he had intended to turn himself in.

“Having an inmate escape is a very serious incident and we apologize for it,” the agency said. “We’ll make every effort to prevent a recurrence.”