KAWASAKI, Japan, Jan. 8 (UPI) -- Japan police officers said Wednesday they are intensifying the hunt for an alleged rapist who escaped from the prosecutor's office in Kawasaki.
Yuta Sugimoto, 20, was arrested Monday with another man for allegedly confining a woman in her car for a few hours, robbing her and sexually assaulting her.
Sugimoto escaped from the interrogation room of the public prosecutor's office at 2:15 p.m. Tuesday.
Police said they have tightened security at schools in Kawasaki and placed him on the national wanted list.
Four-thousand officers are looking for the man, using 900 patrol cars, helicopters and boats, Kyodo News reported.
Sugimoto is described as 5-foot-4 and weighing 141 pounds. During questioning, he was wearing a white sweatshirt and navy blue sweatpants but police speculate he changed clothes while on the run.
