Teen prankster facing family court
SHIZUOKA (Kyodo) Police on Friday turned over to a family court their case against a 15-year-old boy who allegedly posted a prank message on an Internet bulletin board threatening to randomly kill elementary school students in Kanagawa Prefecture.
The high school student, whose name is being withheld, obstructed police by using a personal computer at his home in Kosai, Shizuoka Prefecture, on July 31 to post the message on the Channel 2 Internet board, police said.
Obstructing police is a violation of the Minor Offenses Law.
Police filed an investigative report on the student with the Hamamatsu branch of the Shizuoka Family Court.
They quoted the boy as saying, "Since I heard a person was arrested earlier for a similar act, I wanted to confirm whether police would really respond to such a message." He has apologized, they said.
Kanagawa police tracked down the boy after being alerted to the message by a local citizen who read it.
The Japan Times: Sept. 18, 2004