Police have arrested a 47-year-old man on suspicion of assault after he punched a train conductor who warned him about talking too loudly on the phone in the train car.
According to police, the incident occurred aboard the Odakyu Limited Express Romance Car at around 9 a.m. on Thursday. Sankei Shimbun reported that the suspect, Katsuyuki Inoue, a company executive, became enraged and punched the 43-year-old conductor in the stomach after being warned twice about talking on the phone, which is not permitted inside the train car.
Police said Inoue was drunk at the time. He has denied the charge and was quoted as saying that his hands accidentally hit the conductor when he turned around.
© Japan Today
30 Comments
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wildwest
On J R East, I thought it says on the recorded announcements "refrain from talking on the phone". (And "off" (not offer) your east for those that may need it.)
Alistair Carnell
A company executive, drunk at 9:00 AM. If I were drunk at that time, I'd lose my job. Real classy.
khulifi
47 Old man : I was drunk and can not remember any thing .. Judge : OK go home
Pacech1967
Training for the Bonenkai season, most staff came drunk to work the day after and very little work was done.
bjohnson23
Maybe a long time ago it was frowned upon, today drunk at work is the new norm.
Moonraker
The Romance Car? You couldn't make up the inappropriateness. And not just for this incident.
Aly Rustom
Well, you have to give him props for originality. I was waiting for the whole I was drunk and don't remember, but this guy has innnovation.
John Beara
Drunk at 9am lmao
bullfighter
You keep repeating this same line. If you really believe that claiming you were drunk gets you off in Japan, try driving while drunk and for good measure cause a fatal accident. In ten or twenty years you will be a real expert on prison life in Japan.
Mirai Hayashi
What a self entitled lying little twat.
Monozuki
He had such a tough skin to make up a story to explain, though under the influence of drink. LOL
NCIS Reruns
Being the owner of a smartphone automatically exempts anyone from the obligation to engage in good public manners. It's a license for self-absorbed, loutish behavior.
Gary Raynor
bullfighter
And you keep coming up with silly comparatives have that have nothing in common with each other. What the hell has DIU and causing a fatal accident, have anything to do with yet again another common assault by a middle aged man on a public worker and coming out with the same old asinine excuse that he was drunk at the time?
This excuse is used widely and is an excuse not to give the real reason for such behavior. Punishment should reflect that unwillingness to take responsibility for their actions. To put it in layman's terms for you, the punishment should be more severe for giving such a lame reason.
The Womp
Slow news day?
Strangerland
When has that ever happened in Japan?
I have a smartphone, and I've never received this exemption. Where can I get it?
You say it's an excuse, but when has anyone ever been excused from punishment because they were drunk?
Gary Raynor
StrangerlandSep. 24, 2016 - 11:06AM JST
Look this maybe new to you but in Japan apology and remorse, and taking responsibility for one's wrongs is meant to lessen the punishment.
This guy, like so many of these middle aged men who assault public officials or are caught touching women on trains, goes through the ritual of remorse, but by pulling out the 'I was drunk' excuse is taking no responsibility for his actions.
If he were to take real responsibility for his actions he'd probably admit that he has strong sense of entitlement and public workers are less than the dog mess on the bottom of his shoe. Just like those men who molest on trains and pull out the 'I was drunk' hide the fact that they hold a misogynist attitude towards Japanese women and see them as property belonging to them.
Just as Japanese culture and law lessens the punishment for admitting and showing remorse, it also increases the punishment for the lack of admission and remorse.
The 'I was drunk' line should be interpreted as the latter, rather than former and should be punished accordingly. Was this post really needed? People tell me that other posters got my opinion in my initial post?
Strangerland
You still didn't answer my question:
In fact, if anything, the rest of your post shows it to not be an excuse, but rather something that would do the opposite of excusing him, and get him in more trouble.
So which is it, is it an excuse, or something that will result in more punitive actions from the police?
Garthgoyle
When has that ever happened in Japan?
True. If that was the case, then drunk driving would go without punishment or repercussions.
Jalapeno
I guess the Romance Car was not so romantic that morning. He should have just said, "I was trying to be 'romantic' with my lover on the phone. Is this not the Romance Car? What are you guys, hypocrites?"
Seriously, a company exec at which company? I'd like to know the name of the company that could have someone who gets drunk at 9 am as one of their heads.
nath
"Alcohol"! Alcohol just makes every news story so much better!
bullfighter
So, what is the real reason?
And, what difference does it make what the reason was as long as the other person was not the aggressor?
I punched his lights out because I hate people who wear brown shoes.
I punched his lights out because I didn't like the smell of his after shave lotion.
And, are you ready to claim that everyone who says they were drunk and cannot remember what happened is lieing?
According to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (part of the US National Institutes of Health)
http://pubs.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/arh27-2/186-196.htm
kurisupisu
If being drunk were not a get out of gaol card then Japanese fails would be full of drunks which they are not!
Something must be working......
kurisupisu
Gaols
Dre Hund
Let the conductor take him to court personally. Sue his a**.
bullfighter
Sex in the headline is even better.
presto345
Being drunk an excuse for misconduct? Ridiculous. It's a misdemeanor.
Oh, yes, his hand was at the level of the conductor's stomach. And it made a powerful jibe accidentally too. Seems like a plausible explanation.
DaDude
Just as they make a no fly list on airplanes, they should make it sting for some passengers and make a no ride list for trains. Of course if they had the right technology to do this.
Goodlucktoyou
@mirai, I wouldn't call such a person a lying little twat to his face. The guy is not scared of a train conductor, so good luck.
Dennis Bauer
Didn't hear that one before, i will add it to my repertoire ;)
Thunderbird2
Been on that train... nice and comfy.
So he's got floppy arms that swing around and slap people without any control? I'd pay to see that.