Aggregate statistics on drug seizures and arrests are not yet available for 1995, but preliminary reports suggest that violations of the stimulants control law were up nearly 20 percent over 1994. Approximately eight kilograms of cocaine washed ashore in four rubber bags on an island off the coast of southern Japan. The finder turned the bags over to the police after suspecting that the white powder inside was drugs. Partly as a consequence of revelations concerning the Aum Shinrikyo religious sect, the NPA has requested a 3,500 person increase in police personnel. If approved, it will be the first increase in four years.
Japan has no known drug-related corruption.
Agreements and Treaties. Nonetheless, the DEA reports excellent cooperation between authorities of the two countries in implementing the bilateral extradition treaty, and in information sharing and law enforcement cooperation more generally. Drug production is not a significant problem. However, during this reporting period Japanese investigators learned that Aum Shinrikyo cult leader Shoko Asahara had ordered the production of both narcotics and hallucinogens, including LSD and mescaline. In 1995, DEA reported that Nigerians and other West Africans continued to use Japan as a transit country for heroin.