This file photo shows plush toys of Myaku-Myaku, the official mascot of Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai. (Mainichi/Kenjiro Sato)
OSAKA — The prefectural police here on June 27 arrested two university students for allegedly shoplifting about 330,000 yen (roughly $2,280) worth of official mascot goods at the venue of Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai.
Both suspects are male university students aged 20 and 22 who live in Tokyo, and the two are reportedly friends. The pair are suspected of stealing 73 Myaku-Myaku related items, including plush toys and fans, from the official store at the expo site in Osaka’s Konohana Ward between around 1:15 and 1:40 p.m. on June 26. Osaka Prefectural Police have not disclosed whether the suspects have admitted to the allegations.
According to Konohana Police Station, a customer in the store witnessed the shoplifting. After being notified, a store employee stopped the two as they left the store and handed them over to police officers.
(Japanese original by Tatsuya Naganuma, Osaka City News Department)
AloJapan.com