Got stopped by a police

[yeti]

my first time I was frisked in ro=pongi... I was dressed in a suit walking around at night

...and i was asked for my ID a handful of times in tokyo and once in fukuoka. not sure what kind of profiling they are doing, but I'm a six foot Italian looking man, usually casually dressed

 

[Sudsy]

You married a Yamaguchi girl??? Ah, so in your youth you had a thing for homely, dark-skinned, hairy farmhands with daikon legs and whose only hobbies are complaining, nagging and not having sex.

She was actually quite pretty, and a former ballerina. The complaining and nagging are spot on though.

 

[homer69]

Been in Japan on and off since '87 and never been stopped by the police. Lucky, I guess. I've spent time in koban looking for directions or checking for my lost wallet (actually recovered it in a koban) but never been hassled. I don't carry a bag, usually walk briskly like I know where I'm headed and I look like a native and rarely stop to look at things unless I'm out looking for a meal or bowl of ramen or something like that. My nuanced, conversational Japanese is pretty bad compared to a native but I can usually fake it pretty well and get by...I just can't carry on a lucid conversation about the theory of relativity and how it affects clock skew with a genius from Todai. I do dress like a foreigner whether it is business or casual attire (my shoes and suits are relatively expensive, my casual clothes is more tasteful than the average salaryman, etc.) but nothing flashy or stylish, just conservative and sporty (probably closer to preppy without the extreme look). Even when I was younger I never drew attention from the cops. Maybe just uncommonly fortunate.

 

[Sudsy]

Well, funnily enough I got stopped this afternoon - first time in maybe a decade. I chided them a little for targeting foreigners for their training practice, they were at least honest about it and admitted that they had been told to grill a certain number of foreigners so that the rookies would be prepared for when the tourists come back later this year.

I do find it interesting that the NPA has apparently been told to prepare for the borders to open.

 

[just4fun]

Well, funnily enough I got stopped this afternoon - first time in maybe a decade. I chided them a little for targeting foreigners for their training practice, they were at least honest about it and admitted that they had been told to grill a certain number of foreigners so that the rookies would be prepared for when the tourists come back later this year.

I do find it interesting that the NPA has apparently been told to prepare for the borders to open.

That's sad news.......about the boarders I mean

 

[TAG Manager]

Well, funnily enough I got stopped this afternoon - first time in maybe a decade. I chided them a little for targeting foreigners for their training practice, they were at least honest about it and admitted that they had been told to grill a certain number of foreigners so that the rookies would be prepared for when the tourists come back later this year.

I do find it interesting that the NPA has apparently been told to prepare for the borders to open.

I still say it’ll be 2023 before we see swarms of tourists coming back. The summer election could shake things up… who knows.

I’m going to Shinjuku tonight, I always walk past the koban in front of Okubo Hospital. 怪しかな?

 

[robinmask]

they were at least honest about it and admitted that they had been told to grill a certain number of foreigners so that the rookies would be prepared for when the tourists come back later this year.

The majority of them (still) barely speak any English, and the rest just don't speak it period, so what's the point lol

 

[Sudsy]

The majority of them (still) barely speak any English, and the rest just don't speak it period, so what's the point lol

That kind of IS the point... it's just shitty that they use us as test subjects.

 

[TAG Manager]

I’m going to Shinjuku tonight, I always walk past the koban in front of Okubo Hospital. 怪しかな?

Nothing happened. Walked by a few times - guess they weren't interested.
Had a good night

 

[Fifty Fifty]

Nothing happened. Walked by a few times - guess they weren't interested.
Had a good night

I had 2 cop cars pace me in that area this weekend, but neither stopped me either. After I got home though, the stress hit me. I realized for this month at least, best to do my post-meet up drinking in areas with minimal police exposure. No need to press my luck.

 

[Mr Cat]

OK.

Yes please

 

[Keihan]

The majority of them (still) barely speak any English, and the rest just don't speak it period, so what's the point lol

That's where I apparently got really lucky when a detective and rookie dragged me into an unmarked car outside my hotel. Neither had a clue I was a foreigner, and when I tried the "SORRY, I'M AMERICAN, I DON'T SPEAK JAPANESE" bit, imagine my surprise when the detective switched to English with surprising ease. For veterans of the Usagi Brothel, I'd say while the rookie was a definite 7C the detective was easily a 5 (that's right, two decades later I still got those level-check skills).

Yeah, they may be targeting gaijin for training but they're definitely targeting Japanese males with packs/bags hoping for a bust. If they're still doing this whenever I'm allowed back into Japan again, I just hope they have some cutesy little female trainees on the Akiba beat.

 

[MongerInAStrLnd]

The only time I ever came close to being ID checked in 25 years was a couple years ago when I was walking near the station with a lovely 20 year old half-filipina and the police asked her for ID and not me. She was a japanese citizen.