A 37-year-old man admitted firebombing a mosque and offices run by Pakistani residents in Ebetsu, Hokkaido, saying he wanted to drive Pakistanis out of the country. Prosecutors sought nine years; the verdict is set for October 29. Reactions split between condemning the arson and distrust of the justice system.
Myanmar workers on Specified Skilled Worker visas fled a farming company in Kyogoku, Hokkaido and, with a labor union, are pursuing a criminal complaint over alleged violence and sexual harassment. Online, the anger widened from the accused into a condemnation of Japan's foreign-labor system.
A rental car carrying five Chinese nationals collided with a train at a level crossing on JR's Furano Line in Hokkaido; local reporting said the five suffered minor injuries and none of the roughly 100 people aboard the train were hurt. On the same day, a Spanish tourist's post describing Japan's left-side driving as 'the reverse of ours' circulated, and the two stories merged into a single argument about who should be allowed behind the wheel.