Japan Govt OKs Bill for GPS Monitoring of People on Bail

Tokyo, March 3 (Jiji Press)--The Japanese government approved legislation Friday to enable the use of GPS monitoring devices in order to prevent indicted individuals from fleeing Japan while on bail.

The legislation to revise related laws including the Criminal Procedure Code were drawn up after former Nissan Motor Co. <7201> Chairman Carlos Ghosn escaped from Japan in December 2019, when he was on bail awaiting trial on financial misconduct charges.

Following the revision, courts will be able to order defendants judged to be flight risks to wear GPS devices before being released on bail.

If a GPS device detects entry by a defendant into designated no-go zones, such as airports, without permission or is removed from a defendant, public prosecutors and police officers will be allowed to identify the location of the defendant and detain the person.

Such defendants will also be slapped with imprisonment of up to a year.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]