In an incident at a postal office in Warabi City, Saitama Prefecture, the police have apprehended and arrested a man who was involved in a standoff while armed with a handgun.
In the Warabi Postal Office, an individual believed to be in their 80’s had barricaded themselves with a handgun starting shortly after 2 PM. However, at around 10:20 PM, the police conducted an operation to secure the man’s custody.
Subsequently, the man was arrested on suspicion of violating the Hostage-Taking Punishment Act, and the handgun was confiscated.
According to the police, two female postal office staff members were initially trapped at the scene. One of them, a woman in her 20’s, was rescued and brought out of the building at around 7:15 PM, while another woman in her 30’s managed to escape during the evening, taking advantage of an opportunity, and was also brought to safety.
Additionally, in the Saitama City of Toda, about 1.5 kilometers away from the postal office, there was an incident involving gunshots believed to be from a handgun that occurred around 1 PM. In this incident, a male doctor in his 40’s and a male patient in his 60’s suffered injuries. The police are investigating the potential connection between this incident and the postal office standoff.