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Man arrested after failing to grasp this not-so-cryptic aspect of Japanese business manners.

Many job interviews include an awkward moment where the applicant is asked some variation of the question “Why do you want this job?” Obviously, the primary reason most people seek employment is for financial gain, but even in today’s largely capitalist global society, it’s considered poor form to answer “Because I want money.”

Instead, business etiquette dictates that you express your interest and passion for the industry or company you’re looking to join. But no amount of eloquence could conceal the monetary motivations of a 24-year-old Japanese man who applied for a position with a machinery maintenance company in Yokohama earlier this month.

On November 10, the man (whose name is being withheld) visited the company’s office for a job interview, which the organization’s president carried out personally. However, since the interview was being conducted during business hours, the president had to briefly excuse himself on multiple occasions to give instructions to his staff or take care of other minor matters. Eventually, though, the interview wrapped up, the applicant left, and the president returned to his other tasks.

At the end of the workday, the president retrieved his bag from the interview room, where he’d left it. However, when he opened up the bag, he discovered that the wallet he’d placed inside, in which he’d had 50,000 yen (US$450), was missing.

The president contacted the police, and it didn’t take long for suspicion to settle on the job applicant, who’d been alone in the interview room with the president’s bag several times. On November 21, the applicant was arrested on suspicion of theft, and he has since admitted to stealing the wallet.

So how did the police track the culprit down? Simple: he’d written his actual address on the resume he submitted before his interview. “I really did want to work for the company,” he explained, but given recent developments, he probably shouldn’t expect a job offer any time soon.

Source: Yahoo! News Japan/Asahi Shimbun Digital via Jin
Top image: Pakutaso