Osaka, Oct. 26 (Jiji Press)–Police in Osaka Prefecture, western Japan, have taken action against 43 minors for harassing behavior targeting police, such as throwing firecrackers, shouting a slogan and making prank calls. Such acts, known as “shorinji racing,” are spreading across the country. “We will deal strictly with such behavior as serious criminal acts,” an Osaka police official said. According to the police, a total of about 250 cases of nuisance acts, such as making an emergency police call from a pay phone and hanging up right after shouting “Shorinji-ja” (We are shorinji), were confirmed in the prefecture in September and so far this month. Among other such acts were kicking in the glass doors of and tearing down posters in police boxes. The 43 minors are 7 to 16 years old, with some of them aged 13 or under. Some were arrested on suspicion of causing property damage. Shorinji racing has become known among young people mainly through video-sharing app TikTok and other social media platforms. Some of the minors said they had become interested in shorinji racing after learning about it on social media or committed such acts to entertain school friends. Police in Hyogo Prefecture, adjacent to Osaka, took action against 25 individuals, including elementary school students, over a series of incidents that occurred around the same time, such as cases of releasing juice in and making unauthorized entry into police boxes. The Hyogo police are asking people never to engage in nuisance behavior, including against public facilities. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]
