Cop Kept Crime Reports at Home for 13 Years

The Yomiuri Shimbun

A 43-year-old senior police officer of the Chiba prefectural police took home about 140 investigation-related documents, including crime victims' reports and evidence, and left them unattended for 13 years, it was learned Friday.

According to police, the statute of limitations had taken effect in most of the cases. The prefectural police will send papers on the officer to the Chiba District Public Prosecutors Office on suspicion of destroying public documents.

The police said the officer, who belongs to the Criminal Investigation Section of Sanmu Police Station, took home and left unattended investigation reports, criminal complaints and evidence related to thefts that he was working on, while he was posted at Matsudo and Nagareyama police stations from 1992 to 2005.

(Aug. 25, 2007)