Dozens of American children are abducted to Japan every year-not by strangers, but by parents after messy divorces. (thedailybeast.com)

A 5-year-old boy sustained an injury at a shopping mall in Nagoya on Friday after his hand became trapped in an escalator. (Japan Today)

A 24-year-old woman was in a serious condition Friday after being stabbed by a man whom she reported to police for stalking her in Kurashiki, Okayama Prefecture. (Japan Today)

A 70-year-old woman has been rescued from a toilet in which she had been waiting for help for three days, Hiroshima police said Friday. (Japan Today)

A traditional dance was performed on Friday at an ancient temple in Nikko City, northeast of Tokyo. (NHK)

China's television regulator has ordered a crackdown on dramas about the country's battles with Japan during and before World War Two and demanded they be more serious, state media said on Friday, following viewer complaints about ludicrous storylines. (Reuters)

Police on Friday said that a real estate company employee was stabbed by an unknown assailant in the lobby of an office building near JR Akihabara station. The man is currently in a serious condition in hospital. (Japan Today)

A bear was shot dead after it wandered into a school in Kanazawa, Ishikawa Prefecture, on Thursday. (Japan Today)

Police said Friday they have found four dead bodies in an apartment in Kashiwa, Chiba Prefecture, in what is believed to have been a family murder-suicide. (Japan Today)

Shukan Post (May 24) conveys the difficulties experienced by other parts of the adult-entertainment biz in servicing customers from the communist nation. A deri heru (“delivery health”) call-girl tells the tabloid that she is often requested to arrive at major hotels in the Shinjuku and Ikebukuro entertainment areas of Tokyo by Chinese visitors. (Tokyo Reporter)

Yuichi Miura, 80, has launched his bid to retake the crown as the oldest person to reach the summit of Mount Everest, his management office said Thursday. (Japan Times)

Japanese star chef Miki Nozawa was killed on the German holiday island of Sylt following an alleged dispute with two disgruntled guests about a dish of fried noodles. (ninemsn.com.au)

Six sailors were found dead after a fire on a foreign freighter docked at a port in Hokkaido, northern Japan. The sailors are presumed to be Russians. (NHK)

More than 500 people in court costumes paraded through the ancient capital of Kyoto on Wednesday in the traditional Aoi Festival. (NHK)

Earlier this month, the Osaka Prefectural Board of Education announced a six-month suspension for a 29-year-old female high-school teacher who was working as a prostitute in her free time. (Tokyo Reporter)

Kanagawa Prefectural Police on Sunday announced the arrest of three transvestite Korean nationals for allegedly offering sexual services in Yokohama’s Naka Ward. (Tokyo Reporter)

Wakayama Prefectural Police last week announced the arrest of a 26-year-old man for groping a woman he thought had given him consent via a Web site. (Tokyo Reporter)

Three men robbed a McDonald's outlet of approximately 2 million yen in Hamamatsu, Shizuoka Prefecture, on Tuesday morning. (Japan Today)

On occasion, Japan’s tabloid media will profile the infamous Watakano Island, which is accessible by boat in Mie Prefecture’s Matoya Bay. With a circumference of a mere six kilometers, this tiny hideaway is home to a population of 300 people, most of whose livelihoods revolve around one trade: prostitution. (Tokyo Reporter)

Police said Tuesday that a 7-year-old girl was seriously injured after handball goalposts fell on her. (Japan Today)