By MASATO TAINAKA/ Staff Writer
April 29, 2022 at 18:30 JST
NAGASAKI--A local man was arrested on April 29 on suspicion of committing a “sacrilegious act” by barbecuing meat at an altar for victims of the 1945 atomic bombing of Nagasaki, police said.
The Urakami Police Station said the suspect is a 52-year-old whose occupation is unknown.
Police said the fire used to broil the meat (yakiniku) at the memorial morgue in Nagasaki Peace Park also burned people’s offerings at the altar, such as flowers.
“A case like this has never happened before,” a Nagasaki city official said. “It violates the honor of atomic bombing victims, and it could have led to a fire with serious consequences.”
Police suspect the cooking “party” occurred between 8 a.m. on April 27 and 8 a.m. on April 28.
A city employee called police on the morning of April 28 after finding signs that meat had been cooked on a stainless-steel board beneath the altar.
Prepared food and empty “chuhai” alcohol cans were left around the altar.
After checking security camera footage from around the park, police found the man near the park and asked him to submit to voluntary questioning at the police station.
He was arrested at 12:50 p.m. on April 29.
According to the city government, the morgue holds 8,964 remains of those who died in the atomic bombing but are either unidentified or unclaimed by family members.
The facility is open 24 hours a day, and a lighter is available there so visitors can burn incense for the repose of the victims’ souls.
A security sensor apparently did not work when the meat was cooked, according to the city.
A worker of a cleaning company commissioned by the city earlier found signs that someone had eaten a bento boxed lunch at the altar on the morning of April 25.
The following morning, the worker discovered packed meat left at the altar and a bag containing a men’s shirt nearby.
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Traces of a "yakiniku" party are seen at a memorial altar set up in Nagasaki Peace Park for victims of the 1945 atomic bombing of the city. (Provided by Nagasaki city government)
