In an unexpected turn of events, Japan's senior citizens are now committing most crimes, with 20 percent of all arrests made this decade involving 65 years old individuals and above. This alarming rise in crime rate committed by grannies illustrates Japan's growing problem with old jailbirds whose numbers continue to hit new highs in the country, as stated by the latest crime statistics late last year. The overcrowding of senior citizen offenders is turning prisons into nursing homes.
While the West grapples with health crisis among the older population, Japan is struggling with the crime wave that its senior citizen are committing. Social analysts have identified two reasons for the problem which are alienation from society and poverty. While the overall crime rate have dropped to an all time low in 2015, the Justice Ministry have focused on the rise in criminal offences committed by Japan's senior citizens.
A record of 47,632 elderlies were arrested in 2015. More than 70 percent of this group were caught for minor crimes such as shoplifting in popular stores. Moreover, about 70 percent of all the inmates currently jailed aged 65 or older are repeat offenders.This recent issue has resulted to Japan enacting a new law last month for all government sectors to execute measure that will prevent a further rise of crimes done by old people, the The Star says.
The issue led Japan's Diet to enact a law last month for national and local governments to implement measures to prevent released criminals from relapsing to crime. Last month, the National English daily Japan Times recommended the authorities to "promptly work out measures to facilitate rehabilitation of these people who, in most cases, do not have a job or a place to live when they leave prison". This surging problem with the geriatric population comes as the country struggles to cope with a rapidly aging population, and a lowering fertility rate, the Business Insider reports.
Perhaps the most troubling aspect of Japan's increasing older jailbirds is the fact that prisons now have to try to accommodate an aging inmate population instead of their usual sort of criminals. Because of the modifications done in prisons to make older inmates comfortable, they have inadvertently attracted more senior citizens to attempt to get into the prison system. It is obviously the wrong incentive to Japan's senior citizens.
