The shock collar that Goto is believed to have used to stun his children is pictured at Kokuraminami Police Station in Kitakyushu's Kokuraminami Ward on May 29, 2019. (Mainichi/Hiroya Miyagi)

Man arrested for using dog shock collar to discipline children in southwestern Japan

KITAKYUSHU - A man who is suspected of repeatedly using a dog shock collar to stun children was arrested on May 29 on suspicion of assaulting and injuring them, Fukuoka Prefectural Police said.
The man, 45-year-old Takahiro Goto, a resident of the southwestern Japan city of Kitakyushu in Fukuoka Prefecture, has admitted to the allegations against him, saying he intended to "discipline" his children.

He is specifically accused of using the shock collar on the arms of his two daughters and son between Feb. 26 and 28 this year, when they were aged 17, 13, and 11, respectively. Goto's son, an elementary school student, suffered light burns.

Police said that Goto, who is unemployed, had lived with his wife, who is in her 30s, and their three children. The abuse of Goto's eldest daughter through electrical shocks is believed to have started when she was about 5. On some occasions, his children were apparently shocked several times a day on the grounds that they were not following the house rules.

Goto's actions were uncovered when his eldest daughter talked to a teacher at the vocational school she was attending. The school informed a child consultation center in Kitakyushu, and the center is said to have reported the case to police.

Police are investigating the possibility that Goto abused the children on a day-to-day basis over a long period of time.

The shock collar that Goto is believed to have used on his children was made overseas, and was designed to be put around a dog's neck and operated by remote control to discourage the dog from barking too much.

Source: https://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20190529/p2a/00m/0na/005000c