Tokyo Police Arrest Man for Arson at Tourist Street-Kart Operator

Tokyo Metropolitan Police on 16 July arrested a 28-year-old office worker from Nerima Ward on suspicion of attempted arson after a blaze broke out on the premises of a company that rents street-legal go-karts to tourists in Koto Ward. The fire damaged three parked karts and other property before it was extinguished; no injuries were reported. Investigators say the suspect admitted setting the fire, telling officers he had been stressed by the noise of the karts’ engines. Police are examining whether the man is linked to an English-language note left on one of the vehicles in early May that warned, “Do not start the engine tomorrow. If you break the promise, the kart will be burned.”