Officer accused of child prostitution

Jiji PressTOKYO (Jiji Press) — The Defense Ministry said Wednesday that it has decided to suspend a Maritime Self-Defense Force lieutenant commander from duty for 12 months for an alleged indecent act with a high school girl.

The officer at the Personnel and Education Department of the Maritime Staff Office has confessed to committing obscene acts with some 30 people, mainly high school girls, over the past eight years, sources said.

According to the Maritime Staff Office, the officer in his 30s gave ¥30,000 to a high school girl he met through social media and committed an indecent act with her at a hotel in Kitakyushu in June 2017.