Here's Why Police Officers In Japan Keep Forgetting Their Guns In Public Restrooms

Seeing people leave a public restroom without flushing or washing their hands seems to be too mainstream in Japan. The cops there are leaving behind their guns in bathrooms. No kidding!

Twitter

It seems to be a growing trend of sorts in Japan: A number of police officers across the country leave their firearms hanging in toilet stalls.

According to Japan Today, the most recent incident took place on January 24 when a 26-year-old officer with the Narita Airport Police left his belt with handcuffs and a loaded handgun in the airport¡¯s employee restroom.

Thankfully, just a few minutes later an airport employee happened to visit the restroom and handed over the gun to the authorities. When the officer was questioned he simply said 'I forgot'.

This strange problem has happened several times and most cops say that they have no option but to remove the belt with heavy arms as they drag their pants down to the floor.

We all know that cops have a thousand things running through their mind and are constantly thinking about a task at hand and so slip-ups are understandable.

However, it's happened more than once, last year a 31-year-old officer left his belt, with loaded pistol attached, in the restroom of a 7-Eleven in Okazaki, Aichi Prefecture.

A month before that, a 49-year-old lieutenant with the Machida Department of the Tokyo Metropolitan Police left a gun with five rounds inside in a convenience store restroom. It too was discovered by a customer and returned to police custody.

Twitter

This is what's increasing the fear of something going seriously wrong the next time a cop makes a mistake. Up until now, there have been no reported injuries or cases of people stealing it, but it could soon be an issue if the cops continue to be careless.