Broken Secrets

Japanese Theft Deterrent

September 3, 2010 at 5:00 am Broken Secrets 3 comments

By Chad Upton | Editor

They sit on the counter in many Japanese stores, but they are not for sale.

At the size of a baseball, these bright spheres are placed in public view to deter theft. They’re not magical, they’re highly practical.

If a store or bank is robbed, the employees throw the baseballs at robbers as they leave the shop. Bright paint covers the thief, making it easy to identify them as they flee the scene and potentially prove their guilt when caught.

Although orange is the most popular color, they’re actually available in a variety of colors. They’re known as bohan balls, and they cost about 1500 yen ($18 USD).

The paint is brightly colored, glows in the dark and carries a strong odor. The odor is embarrassing, but more importantly, police dogs are trained to track it.

Oh and you can get a semi-automatic gun to shoot the balls too.

It’s called the Chaser because you can follow the criminals and still paint them or their getaway car from a safe distance.

Sources: Stippy, Urlesque, Great Geek Manual, Ring-G, Rakuten, Toyokuni

Entry filed under: Demystified. Tags: ball, deterant, deterent, Deterrent, die, dye, orange, pack, paint, retail, store, theft.