Post by Banjo on Jan 30, 2011 13:15:01 GMT 7
Pensioners forced to shoplift food
By North Asia correspondent Mark Willacy
Posted Fri Jan 28, 2011 8:09pm AEDT
Japanese police say the number of pensioners shoplifting has reached a record high, with nearly 30,000 arrested last year.
Many were caught stealing food rather than luxury items.
Japanese police say more than a quarter of shoplifters arrested last year were pensioners, and the vast majority of over-65s caught shoplifting were stealing basic items such as food or clothes.
A police official told the Japanese media that pensioners were committing theft not just for financial reasons, but out of a sense of social isolation.
By the middle of the century 40 per cent of Japan's population will be older than 65, with many left alone because their children have moved away to seek work.
By North Asia correspondent Mark Willacy
Posted Fri Jan 28, 2011 8:09pm AEDT
Japanese police say the number of pensioners shoplifting has reached a record high, with nearly 30,000 arrested last year.
Many were caught stealing food rather than luxury items.
Japanese police say more than a quarter of shoplifters arrested last year were pensioners, and the vast majority of over-65s caught shoplifting were stealing basic items such as food or clothes.
A police official told the Japanese media that pensioners were committing theft not just for financial reasons, but out of a sense of social isolation.
By the middle of the century 40 per cent of Japan's population will be older than 65, with many left alone because their children have moved away to seek work.