Yao City Hall Employee Stopped by Station Staff at Ticket Gate; Forged Disability Certificate Found in Bag

From The Yomiuri Shimbun

June 13 2026

Yao, Osaka Pref – On the 12th, the city of Yao, Osaka Prefecture, announced that it had imposed a six-month suspension as a disciplinary measure on a 60-year-old assistant section chief in the Environmental Department for attempting to ride the railway without paying the proper fare and for forging a physical disability certificate. The employee reportedly submitted his resignation on the same day, which was accepted.

According to the city’s announcement, in May, the employee traveled by train from Yao City to Shikoku, transferring between multiple services. When he attempted to leave the station through the ticket gates without paying the correct fare, he was stopped by station staff.

He produced a ticket that he had purchased in advance for a much shorter section of the journey, apparently trying to make it appear as though he had boarded at a nearby station. However, the station employee became suspicious and inspected his belongings, discovering a forged Physical Disability Certificate (身体障害者手帳) inside his bag. He then paid the actual fare, which amounted to approximately 14,000 yen, on the spot.

During the city’s investigation, the employee stated that he had never actually used the forged disability certificate. He explained:

“I had heard that if you showed it at theme parks, you could be admitted with priority, so I made one.”

He also reportedly said:

“Now that I’ve turned 60, I wanted to save as much money as I could.”