A 49-year-old former plumber was arrested on suspicion of theft after allegedly stealing metal plumbing valves from a public park restroom in Soka, Saitama Prefecture, on April 8th. (News On Japan)

Emperor Naruhito sowed rice seeds on April 9th in a traditional ceremony aimed at promoting agriculture, held at a seedbed near the Biological Laboratory within the Imperial Palace grounds. (News On Japan)

Three masked intruders broke into a luxury goods purchase shop in Hiroo, Tokyo, in the early hours of April 8th, stealing approximately 80 million yen worth of high-end bags and jewelry before fleeing the scene. (News On Japan)

A truck driver arrested over a fatal accident on the Shin-Meishin Expressway in Kameyama, Mie Prefecture, on March 20th, which left six people dead including three children, has admitted to looking at her smartphone at the time of the crash. (News On Japan)

A scaffold collapsed during crane dismantling work at a factory in Kawasaki on April 7th, causing five workers to fall, leaving three dead and one missing as authorities continue search efforts. (News On Japan)

A man in his 60s was arrested in the act after allegedly threatening a route bus driver with a knife while the vehicle was in motion in Tokyo’s Nakano Ward on April 7th. (News On Japan)

A bus carrying riot police from Nara overturned on the Joban Expressway around noon on April 5th in Ibaraki Prefecture while en route to Fukushima to provide security for an upcoming visit by the Emperor and Empress, leaving one officer with minor injuries. (News On Japan)