Japan: Bus Driver Stole €6, Lost €73,000 Pension Bonus After 29 Years

In an unfortunate turn of events, a bus driver in Kyoto, Japan, lost a one-time pension bonus worth €73,000 after being caught stealing €6 from passengers’ fares. The incident was captured on the bus’s security camera in 2022, showing the driver pocketing ¥1,000 (equivalent to €6). The driver contested the decision in court against the city authorities, who had withheld his retirement bonus of over ¥12 million (€73,000). Initially sentenced in the lower court, the penalty was overturned on appeal due to its severity. However, the Supreme Court recently issued a final ruling siding with the municipal authority and reinstated the original sentence. The court emphasized that such actions could undermine public trust in the transportation system and its proper functioning. During the incident, five passengers boarded the bus and paid ¥1,150 collectively. The driver requested they insert ¥150 into the fare machine while he personally accepted a ¥1,000 note, which he failed to declare. Despite evidence, the driver denied the accusation when questioned by his supervisor, according to court documents. Shinichi Hirai, an official from Kyoto’s Public Transportation Bureau, stated, ‘Every bus driver works alone and handles public funds. We take such acts of withholding money very seriously.’