Tokyo police have arrested a 39-year-old unemployed man suspected of randomly assaulting seven women in the space of about 15 minutes on a street in Chiyoda Ward last month.
Just after 9 p.m. on October 17 in Kanda Jimbocho, Hikaru Hamaguchi, 39, is accused of approaching a woman in her 20s from the front as she was walking home. He slapped her across the left cheek with an open hand, then walked away without saying a word, according to investigative sources.
Police believe he was responsible for six more assaults on other women in the same area, all within roughly 15 minutes before and after that slap. The victims, ranging from their teens to their 20s, were punched in the abdomen and hit with flying kicks from behind as he passed them on the street. All of the attacks were unprovoked, and every victim was a woman.
Investigators identified Hamaguchi, a resident of Toshima Ward, as the prime suspect after reviewing security camera footage from the surrounding area. He has been taken into custody but has refused to answer questions about the assaults and is remaining silent under interrogation.