Tokyo: Man apprehended after standoff at Shibuya izakaya

TOKYO (TR) – Tokyo Metropolitan Police have arrested a man who wielded a knife as he barricaded himself inside a restaurant in Shibuya Ward on Monday afternoon, reports the Sankei Shimbun (June 25).

At around 2:40 p.m., the Harajuku Police Station was tipped off about a man who declined to pay his bill and was behaving violently. Officers arriving at the izakaya restaurant, located on the second floor of a building near JR Yoyogi Station, encircled the area to coax him into giving himself up.

However, the man proceeded to hurl bottles and shoot off fireworks. He also smashed a window fronting the establishment, according to police.

In footage provided by TV Asahi (June 25), the man was shown shirtless, sporting a number of tattoos, and standing in front of the shattered window with the knife.

At around 5:00 p.m., officers from a special police force entered the building and apprehended the man. The name of the man was not released.

At the time the incident began, there were employees inside the restaurant. However, they all managed to flee to safety, police said.