Japan’s low-crime image dented as car thefts, home break-ins rise

At a seminar in May on car theft held by the Aichi prefectural police in central Japan, a man in his 50s listened intently - he was twice targeted in the past.

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A woman walking alone in a restaurant area near Tokyo's Shimbashi district at dusk. Japan has often prided itself on its low-crime society, but that has been marred by rising car thefts and home intrusions.

(PHOTO: AFP)

When he woke up one morning in 201, his prized Toyota Land Cruiser had vanished. Then, one night in 2015, he found a bicycle blocking his entrance, making it difficult to open the door. His car was still there, but a large square hole had been made in the body. The internal wiring had been burned out, which cost more than 100,000 yen (S$830) to repair.

According to provisional data from the National Police Agency, the number of car thefts from January to June 2025 reached 3,821, up 29.2 per cent from a year earlier.

Aichi prefecture, the heartland of Toyota Motor, recorded the highest figure with 639 cases, a 50.4 per cent increase from the same period in 2024. Saitama, near Tokyo, with 479 cases was up 14.6 per cent, and Kanagawa with 396 cases was up 66.4 per cent.