Japanese Man Calls Cops On Himself After Not Having Enough Money to Pay For Meal

The unemployed senior finished his meal worth 650 yen ($5.75) without any intention of paying and even told the restaurant’s manager to call the police, according to SoraNews24. Surprisingly, the manager was lenient towards the senior and even allowed him to settle his debt later.

While the manager was hesitant about calling the authorities, the unemployed senior insisted in informing the cops of the misdemeanor himself. He used a payphone nearby to dial the police, who eventually arrested him on suspicion of fraud.

Apparently, this wasn’t the first time the unemployed senior has been to jail; he explained to local authorities that he was merely hungry but didn’t have enough funds to pay for his meal.

This incident isn’t uncommon, given the fact that 20% of crime in Japan are committed by elderly people, according to Business Insider. The crimes that seniors commit are mostly petty, such as shoplifting, but local authorities admit that it’s still becoming a problem.

Justice Ministry official Shinsuke Nishioka explained that the dilemma is forcing the prison staff to cater to the needs of the seniors, making their job “like nursing care”. Japanese researcher Yuki Shinko elaborated that seniors find prison life more practical as they struggle to apply for jobs the older they get.

“If you are arrested, you still get a roof over your head, you’re fed three times a day and you get health checkups. So it’s sort of a win-win situation either way,” Shinko explained. With that said, it’s no wonder there are seniors committing crimes, such as the elderly ninja who constantly robbed for a living since the pros to prison outweigh the cons.

Feature Image (left) via Flickr / Keith Allison (CC BY 2.0), (right) Wikimedia Commons / Guilhem Vellut (CC BY 2.0)