Knife-wielding man kills woman at Tokyo Pokemon shop before taking his own life
Despite strict gun control laws and rare violent crimes, Japan has seen a number of high-profile knife attacks in recent years
A man brandishing a knife stabbed a woman in a Pokemon store in downtown Tokyo before turning the knife on himself, leaving both dead, Japanese police said on Thursday.
Officers rushed to the scene in a popular shopping centre after receiving an emergency call reporting a rampage by a knife-wielding man.
Police said the woman, who was stabbed in the neck, was in her 20s and believed to be an employee at the Pokemon store on the second floor of the Sunshine City building, which houses shops and offices.
The attacker then stabbed himself in the neck, Tokyo police said. Both the attacker and the victim were in critical condition when they were taken to hospital and were later pronounced dead, police said.
Police said they are investigating the attack as murder.
The Pokemon Company, in a statement posted on X, said the store, Pokemon Centre Mega Tokyo, will be closed until further notice as it prioritises cooperation with the police investigation and support for the store staff.