Japan Youth Target Police Through Social Media Stunts

Japanese teenagers are using social media to coordinate pranks and stunts targeting local police forces.

Japanese authorities are responding to a rising wave of juvenile delinquency fueled by social media platforms. Teenagers in regions like Osaka and Hyogo have formed anonymous groups to coordinate prank stunts directed at police officers. Police have detained several minors as hundreds of related incidents emerge.

• The trendMinors orchestrate online pranks known locally as Shorinji racing to provoke law enforcement.
• The numbers250 incidents tied to social media pranks were recorded in Osaka Prefecture over two months.
• The regionsAuthorities in Osaka and Hyogo prefectures have carried out detentions following these coordinated stunts.