An Osaka Buddhist monk and his friend have been arrested after they forced a teen-age girl into their car and raped her, police said Wednesday.
Their arrest for illegal confinement and rape is apparently the latest in a series of offenses allegedly committed by monk Masanori Minami and his unemployed friend Koki Nagai. Both admit to the accusations.
Police said the pair grabbed an 18-year-old girl as she walked through the streets of Sakai, Osaka Prefecture, on April 15. They purportedly forced her into their car and drove to a local parking lot. Police said the pair then took turns raping her in the car.
Minami, 29, of Sumiyoshi-ku, dropped out of university and became an acolyte at the temple where his father is the chief priest. He usually accompanies his father on daily visits to parishioners.
He met 29-year-old Nagai at a pachinko parlor in about March this year and they became friends.
Minami would spend his days working and studying Buddhist scriptures then use the temple car to go out at nights carousing with Nagai.
Further investigations into the two suspects continue as police suspect they committed more crimes.