FUKUSHIMA--A prefectural government employee here stole 181 dosimeters and sold them to pay off gambling debts, authorities said.
FUKUSHIMA--A prefectural government employee here stole 181 dosimeters and sold them to pay off gambling debts, authorities said.
The employee in his 30s had admitted to the theft of government-owned personal dosimeters worth 3.75 million yen ($32,000), officials said Jan. 28.
The prefectural government is considering criminal charges of theft.
Officials said that between October and November 2013 the employee served as chief examiner of the government’s regional medical service division in charge of managing and tracking personal dosimeters used for measuring radiation exposure during evacuation drills.
During that time, the suspect pilfered the 181 dosimeters from lockers and storage areas and sold them to a recycling manufacturer in Fukushima and a buyer in Saitama Prefecture for about 900,000 yen.
The man used most of the money to pay off pachinko gaming debts, officials said.