Report: Filmmaker Kitano's car attacked by man with pickax

Police have arrested a man who allegedly attacked with a pickax a car carrying Japan’s entertainment icon Takeshi Kitano, though nobody was injured, according to media reports

TOKYO -- Tokyo police have arrested a man who allegedly attacked a car carrying Japanese entertainment icon Takeshi Kitano with a pickax, though nobody was injured, according to media reports. The 74-year-old director and actor, also known by his stage name Beat Takeshi, was in the car with his driver and was just leaving the compound of TBS television network after his weekly live talk show Saturday night, TBS and other Japanese media reported Sunday. The suspect allegedly smashed Kitano’s car several times with a pickax, demanding Takeshi get out of the car, TBS reported. A security guard called police and the suspect was arrested at the scene, reports said. The suspect is a man in his 40s and was also carrying a knife with a 10-centimeter (4-inch) blade, according to media reports, including Kyodo News and TBS.