Police in Japan believe a criminal group that has been carrying out a series of violent burglaries in the Tokyo area may be linked to crimes in other parts of the country. They suspect the criminals are using social media to recruit members.
Tokyo police have launched a robbery and murder investigation after a 90-year-old woman was found dead at her home. A spate of similar robberies have occurred in the Kanto region this month.
Japanese Defense officials say a destroyer ship has been involved in an incident off the country's southwestern coast. The Maritime Self-Defense Force vessel may have hit rocks underwater and is unable to navigate.
The Japanese government's Transport Safety Board has issued a report on the cause of the fatal sightseeing boat accident off the northern main island of Hokkaido in April. It says that the boat sank because it was flooded with seawater that had entered from a hatch which had not been closed completely.