The suspect who allegedly ripped the Japanese flag off the Ambassador Uichiro Niwa’s car is now in the custody of the Beijing Municipal Public Security Bureau, Asahi Shimbun reports.
The incident happened amid growing tensions between China and Japan over disputed islands off the East China Sea. Beijing is trying to put a lid on anti-Japan protests despite handing out cutting words of its own. The suspect received much support from public in China, who called him “an anti-Japanese hero for the 21st century”. Authorities said the incident remains under investigation. Whether President Hu Jintao would press criminal charges could be the turning point in anti-Japanese sentiment in China.
