Published: Just now
Three people have been arrested in Japan on suspicion of having performed unhygienic pranks at restaurants where sushi is served from a conveyor belt.
The trio’s actions – which began to be called “sushi terror” – became known when pictures and videos began to circulate on social media. Among other things, one of those now arrested was seen taking a piece of sushi passing on the conveyor belt, pushing the whole piece into his mouth and then gulping from a public soy bottle to wash the sushi down.
Similar videos from various conveyor belt sushi places show, for example, people picking up and moving pieces of sushi after first licking their fingers, and people licking tea cups and then putting them back on the shelf for clean cups.
According to local police, the three who have now been arrested are two men in their 20s and a 15-year-old girl.
Kura Sushi, one of the sushi chains affected by “sushi terror”, said in a statement that it welcomed the arrests of the suspects.
“Our hope is that these arrests will raise awareness in the community that these pranks, which profoundly undermine the trust of our customers, are criminal acts,” the company writes.