A Japanese man living in the United States was arrested Wednesday for allegedly splashing an oil-like substance at a shrine in Chiba Prefecture in 2015.
According to the Chiba Prefectural Police, Masahide Kanayama, 63, whose occupation is unknown, is suspected of damaging the Katori Shrine in the city of Katori.
Kanayama was brought back to Japan under the U.S.-Japan extradition treaty.
He is alleged to have damaged four parts of the shrine in March 2015, including its pillars and the steps of its main worship hall, a state-registered tangible cultural property, by splashing an oil-like substance on them.
Other areas of the Shinto shrine were also found stained with the substance.
Kanayama has admitted to the allegations.
Similar incidents were also reported at sites of traditional buildings across Japan, including Naritasan Shinshoji temple in the city of Narita in China Prefecture, as well as Nijo-jo castle and Todaiji temple in the cities of Kyoto and Nara.
Chiba police is looking into Kanayama’s motives and whether he was involved in the other incidents.
The police identified Kanayama through security camera footage and obtained a warrant for his arrest in April 2015. As he had left Japan by then and had stayed in the U.S., the warrant could not be executed.
