Japanese man gets jail time for 'kidnapping' dolls

LazerLordz

24 May 05, 16:57

Japanese man gets jail time for 'kidnapping' dolls

Mon May 23, 2005 6:12 AM ET
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TOKYO (Reuters) - A Japanese man has been sentenced to five-and-a-half years in jail for snatching mannequins used by a cake shop chain to tout its wares.

"Peko-chan," a round-eyed doll around the size of a six-year-old, has been used by Fujiya Co. Ltd. to sell sweets for five decades and her grinning countenance is a familiar sight in front of shops around Japan.

Recently, however, she has become a favorite of collectors, leading to a rash of "Peko-chan" snatchings.

Takeishi Shibuya, 31, was convicted of stealing 15 of the large dolls, valued at about 1.1 million yen ($10,170), a court official in Yamagata prefecture, northern Japan, said on Monday.

In several cases, Shibuya used pepper spray and spray paint to fend off store employees, leading prosecutors to demand a sentence of nine years in prison.

"But he has reflected on his crimes and feels bad about what he did, so the sentence was lighter as a result," the official said.

After a wave of "Peko-chan" disappearances last year, the company suggested chaining the dolls down, but customers complained that this would be cruel.

LazerLordz

24 May 05, 17:05

hisoka

24 May 05, 19:48

Originally posted by LazerLordz:
Japanese man gets jail time for 'kidnapping' dolls

Mon May 23, 2005 6:12 AM ET
Printer Friendly | Email Article | Reprints | RSS

TOKYO (Reuters) - A Japanese man has been sentenced to five-and-a-half years in jail for snatching mannequins used by a cake shop chain to tout its wares.

"Peko-chan," a round-eyed doll around the size of a six-year-old, has been used by Fujiya Co. Ltd. to sell sweets for five decades and her grinning countenance is a familiar sight in front of shops around Japan.

Recently, however, she has become a favorite of collectors, leading to a rash of "Peko-chan" snatchings.

Takeishi Shibuya, 31, was convicted of stealing 15 of the large dolls, valued at about 1.1 million yen ($10,170), a court official in Yamagata prefecture, northern Japan, said on Monday.

In several cases, Shibuya used pepper spray and spray paint to fend off store employees, leading prosecutors to demand a sentence of nine years in prison.

"But he has reflected on his crimes and feels bad about what he did, so the sentence was lighter as a result," the official said.

After a wave of "Peko-chan" disappearances last year, the company suggested chaining the dolls down, but customers complained that this would be cruel.

cruel