Video-Koban Cops

[Taro Toporific]

Via dottocomu -Oct 11
Tokyo's videophone police boxes
Latest innovation by the Tokyo police force is videophone kiosks in koban (police boxes) so that you can talk to a cop face to face if everyone happens to be out on patrol or gone for the night [drinking]. .....

[maraboutslim]

I once jogged a few blocks, in a yukata (don't ask: at least i wasn't wearing geta) to the koban because there was this guy leaned up against a vending machine, holding his stomach and all bloody. Of course no one was at the koban. On the way back I saw a cop on his bicyucle and told them about it.

Unfortunately, what looked like a serious injury to me, turned out to be just a drunk guy. It was his hand that was bleeding onto his stomach, and not his stomach bleeding onto his hand! He was just passed out from drinking to much and the cops woke him up and hassled him. Oops, my bad.

But the video koban ain't a bad idea 'cause they are often "out" of the box.