'Shock': Former Japanese weightlifting hero caught stealing eggs, breaks clerk's finger "Crunch"... "Descended to criminal thief": What exactly happened at the convenience store?

*This content was translated by AI.

A former Japanese national weightlifting team member who competed in the Olympics was arrested by police for injuring a clerk while stealing groceries at a convenience store. Charges of robbery with injury, not simple theft, were applied.

According to Japan's TBS News on the 6th (Korean time), Toshiaki Yamamoto (34), a former national weightlifting team member from the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, was caught red-handed and arrested by the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department on charges of robbery with injury on the 1st.

Yamamoto is suspected of stealing a carton of eggs and soy sauce at a convenience store in Kita Ward, Tokyo. According to investigators, a male clerk in his 40s noticed Yamamoto's suspicious behavior while he was wandering inside the store, witnessed the theft, and grabbed Yamamoto's backpack. In the process, Yamamoto tried to flee and pushed the clerk down, causing the victim serious injury with a fractured finger on his left hand.

During police questioning, Yamamoto admitted, "It is true that I stole the items," acknowledging the theft itself. However, regarding the injuries inflicted, he reportedly denied intent by stating, "I did not use violence."

At 34 years old this year, Yamamoto was a top-tier athlete who successively set Japanese national records in three weight classes: 89kg, 96kg, and 102kg. He finished fourth at the 2018 Jakarta-Palembang Asian Games and competed in the men's 96kg category at the Tokyo Olympics held in 2021, lifting 168kg in the snatch but failing all three attempts in the clean and jerk, resulting in disqualification.

After disappearing from international competition following the Tokyo Olympics, he was reportedly running a private gym in central Tokyo until recently. Although no official retirement announcement was made, the Japan Weightlifting Association stated that Yamamoto's athlete registration was officially cancelled as of April this year.

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*This content was translated by AI.