An assistant police inspector in Oku, Tokyo, has been arrested for groping a 15-year-old girl on a train.

The 57-year-old man has been named as Tomio Sato, who works in the traffic division. Sato is accused of groping the high school first grader's breast and buttocks for 10 minutes, while standing behind her on a train.

According to Fuji TV, when the train reached Omiya Station in Saitama Prefecture, the girl seized Sato's arm and attempted to alert a station guard at which point he broke free and ran. A passerby chased Sato for 300 meters before catching him and subduing him until the authorities arrived.

During questioning, Sato was quoted as saying, "I did it because I was feeling stressed."

In a statement released to the press, an Oku police official said, "It is regrettable that one of our own personnel has been arrested. We intend to deal with the matter in a strict and impartial manner."

© Japan Today